


The Time-Traveling Pig

by LunaFlammata



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Basically Techno gets sent back to the first war for L'manburg, Canon Typical Violence, Chaos Ensues, Don't worry about that Major character death tag, Dreamon Hunters, Dreamons, Everyones probably a little OOC but it's fine, Fudywastaken, Fundy is his apprentice, Fundy kind of goes through the ringer ngl, He's not that important in the grand scheme of things though, I relate to Fundy way to much to be healthy, It's a time-travel fic, L'Manberg War of Independence on Dream Team SMP (Video Blogging RPF), M/M, Mentioned Jshlatt, NOT THE PEOPLE - Freeform, No beta we die like WIlbur after he blew up his nation, Not Canon Compliant, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Respawn Mechanics, SBI dynamics, SHIP THE CHARACHTERS, Slight graphic description of an injury, Technoblade loves potatoes, There's honestly a lot more angst than I intended, Time Travel AU, Tubbo is a dreamon hunter, When did this become a Tubbo and Fundy centric fic, l'manberg, l'manburg, mostly - Freeform, obviously, sbi are a family, they respawn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:28:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 31
Words: 31,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27810766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LunaFlammata/pseuds/LunaFlammata
Summary: After the war for L'manburg, Techno accidentally stumbles upon an odd glitch, and finds himself back during the first war for L'manburg's independence.  Naturally, things go pretty differently.
Relationships: Clay | Dream/Floris | Fundy, Dave | Technoblade & TommyInnit, Dave | Technoblade & Wilbur Soot, Floris | Fundy & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Toby Smith | Tubbo & Wilbur Soot, Tubbo & Tommyinnit
Comments: 438
Kudos: 1244
Collections: Completed stories I've read





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BlueQuills](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueQuills/gifts).



> By the request of BlueQuills. Go check them out. Seriously, do it. There writing is really good.
> 
> Request: (An AU in which Techno glitches himself into the finale of the first war Dream SMP War (on whoever's side you want), completely changing the course of the battle, and basically causing complete chaos.
> 
> Blood for the Blood God :D)

Techno glanced behind him, scanning for enemies. His heart wasn’t in it, though. The sight of Wilbur standing among the rubble of L’manburg, Phil behind him, was still too fresh in his mind. As much as he tried to shove the image to the side, it wouldn’t leave him alone. Their father had killed Wil. Wil was supposed to have been the one protecting them. Wil was supposed to be the one who made sure it never went so far as Techno summoning the withers. Wil was supposed to keep everything under control. Frankly, he blamed Wil for the pained expression he had seen on his younger brothers’ faces as he summoned the creatures. He knew he was to blame for actually going through with the plan of course, but Wilbur had promised he would blow the place before a government could be established. He had promised he would do his best to make sure that no one was caught in the crossfire.

But Techno knew that L’manburg would never recover from the damage inflicted by its former leader. The people would never recover from the mountain of scars they kept amassing. Frankly, he blamed Phil too. Blamed him for letting it get this far. Blamed him for not swooping in to save the day. Then again, if those were his standards for blame, he was hardly blameless himself. He kicked a rock half-heartedly, and it went skittering across the forest floor. Another image forced itself into the forefront of his mind, despite his best efforts to ignore it. He desperately didn’t want to think about what had happened just after the TNT went off. He desperately didn’t want to think about the sight of Wilbur, crazed joy in his eyes, run through with a diamond sword, Philza Minecraft, their father, holding the other end of it. He closed his eyes tightly. “Don’t think about it. Don’t think about it. Worry about yourself. Figure out your screwed-up mess of a family later.” Not looking where he was going, Techno’s foot snagged on a root, and he pitched forward. Eyes flying open, he realized he was about to hit the trunk of an oak tree. He threw his arms out, braced for impact, but instead found himself tumbling head over heels, rolling down a wooden path. Finally, he came to a stop.

Slowly, he stood up and took in his surroundings. He was standing on a sturdy wooden path, one side walled in by a small hillside, covered in ivy, the other walled in by a surprisingly ornate brick wall. Behind it, he could just make out the telltale red of weeping vines. It must have been a farm of some kind, since they didn’t naturally spawn in the overworld. It looked ravaged and blackened, as if it was all that remained of a devastating fire. To his right, a little ways in front of him, the path curved up to the top of the hill, as well as continuing forwards. He recognized it almost instantly.

He was on the prime path, directly in the middle of the Dream SMP’s land. That probably wasn’t the best place to be right now, especially since Tommy and Tubbo seemed to think he had betrayed them, despite the fact that they had literally formed a government in front of him. Techno sighed. He was going to be salty about that for a while. Then the strangeness of the situation clicked. He had been in the woods just a moment ago, on his way to Pogtopia and his base. Now he was in the heart of Dream’s territory. He examined his surroundings a little more closely. He realized there were very few familiar landmarks. Of course, he hadn’t traveled through the SMP that much, but he couldn’t find any of the buildings that made up the holy land. That was odd. He needed more information, and there was probably only one other place he could get it. As far as he knew, everyone was still gathered in L’manburg. He turned to face the other direction, and marched down the Prime Path.

Once he got past the hill, he saw the familiar set of steps that led down into L’manburg’s territory. In the distance, he could see the area where L’manburg was supposed to be, but it looked different. Where he had expected to see the giant crater Wilbur had left behind as his final gift to the nation he founded, there were instead huge black and yellow walls. The area also seemed a lot more densely wooded; at least half the buildings he was familiar with were missing. Down by the wall’s gate, on a flat stretch of land, there was a commotion, and Techno could hear the faint sounds of yelling.

He definitely needed more information. There was no way all of this could have changed in the hour since he had been gone. Carefully, he made his way down the stairs. As he got closer he recognized the voice of the person who was yelling. It was Tommy. Despite himself, Techno smiled a little. There was something comforting about hearing the brash teenager cussing someone out. It felt normal, like all was right with the world. He reached the bottom of the stairs, and saw that it was Dream and Tommy standing in front of the walls. The green-clad man had clearly provoked Tommy’s wrath, as the teenager was jamming an accusing finger at the blank white mask that was Dream’s face. The two looked different though. Dream’s mask was cracked and stained with dirt and ash. Tommy was in a dress shirt, a red necktie, and a dark blue jacket. The outfit looked familiar, but Techno couldn’t quite place it. It was beat up, torn and roughly stitched together in multiple places. Then it clicked. It was Tommy’s old revolutionary get-up. But Tommy hadn’t worn that since he had gotten kicked out of Manburg. In fact, Techno was pretty sure the teen had burned it. So why was he wearing it now? Then Tommy shifted to the side to reveal another person in the same get-up standing beside him. Techno’s breath hitched.

“Wilbur?” Apparently it was louder than he had meant it to be, because all three of them whirled around, hands on their weapons. Tommy’s eyes widened with shock, but then his face split into a huge grin. It took Dream a moment to recognize him, but once he did his mouth dropped slightly in shock. Wilbur’s face didn’t betray a reaction. “Technoblade,” he greeted. His voice was even, but Technoblade picked up on the faint trace of shock in his brother’s voice. “What are you doing here?” Dream shot Wilbur a disbelieving glance. “You know The Blade?”

“That’s right!” Tommy said, a huge grin splitting his face. “Man, you’re gonna be so sorry you ever crossed us, Dream.” “Ok, hold on a moment. What’s going on?” Techno asked, holding his hands up in a slow down gesture. “I could ask you the same thing, Techno,” Wilbur replied evenly. “Did you come to help L’manburg?” Techno’s brow furrowed. “What, no? I came to help-” he stopped.

The pieces clicked. The missing buildings, the revolutionary get-up, the walls. It seemed he was back when L’manburg had just been founded for some reason. It probably wasn’t a good idea to reveal all the information he had just yet. “I’m sorry,” Dream butted in before Techno had a chance to cover his tracks. “But how do you know The Blade, Soot?” Tommy turned to him, a proud smile on his face. “Cause he’s our brother!” Dream blinked. Once. Twice. Clearly, he wasn’t sure how to react to the announcement that his enemies were related to one of the most powerful people in the world.

“I see.” Dream’s voice was cool, and the mask covered any potential signs of panic. But Techno had gotten to know the man well. He could hear the strain that was starting to take root in Dream’s voice. Whatever was going on, he was clearly worried about Techno’s status as a wild card. Techno couldn’t deny the jolt of pleasure that sent down his spine. It was strange though. Even if he and Dream weren’t the closest, they at the very least wouldn’t turn on each other without some kind of warning beforehand. Then again, it was even stranger that Dream didn’t seem to know him at all. Techno would have thought the battle they had fought at the lake near Pogtopia would have been more memorable. And furthermore, why was Wilbur alive? Techno knew for a fact that Wil had been on his last life. There was no way he should have respawned.

“Well, Tommy,” Dream said, drawing Techno out of his thoughts. “I accept your challenge. A duel for L’manburg’s independence.” Techno’s brow furrowed. A duel? Hadn’t L’manburg already won its independence? Then the full implications of the sentence hit Techno. Tommy, his little brother, was going to duel Dream to the death. No. There was no way Techno was going to let that happen. “I accept in his place,” the pig-themed warrior said before he could stop himself. Tommy’s head snapped around to face him. “What? No! This is my fight, Techno! You don’t even know what’s going on!” the teen exploded.

“Maybe not. But let me make one thing very clear, Tommy. I’m not going to watch another one of my brothers die tonight. Especially because he’s following some ridiculous, misguided sense of heroism.” Tommy shot him a puzzled look, and Wilbur raised an eyebrow, but Techno turned his attention to the green-clad warrior in front of him. “I’ll duel you, Dream.” Techno could feel his new enemy appraising him. “Very well,” Dream said “I accept. But just so you know, if you lose, L’manburg does not become an independent nation.” Dream paused. “And all rebels will be punished accordingly.” Dream let that sink in. Techno nodded once, a sign of understanding, although he was still confused as to why L’manburg needed independence. Then it all clicked into place. He had traveled back in time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be another chapter, don't worry.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Families are like branches on a tree. We grow in different directions, but our roots are the same."

Tommy noticed that Techno had been uncharacteristically quiet the whole afternoon. He knew Techno tended to get lost in thought before a big battle, but he doubted the duel with Dream counted as a big battle, at least for the blood god. Techno could take Dream on in his sleep. No, The Blade must have been preoccupied with something else. Of course, Tommy’s thoughts were preoccupied as well. Techno’s comment from earlier kept bothering him. “I’m not going to watch another one of my brother’s die tonight.” It didn’t make any sense. The last time anyone in L’manburg had lost a life was in Eret’s final control room. But that had been months ago. Plus, he hadn’t written Phil or Techno about it at all. Certainly, Techno hadn’t watched it go down. That day would have ended a lot differently if he had. Tommy stewed in his thoughts as he patched up Techno’s various injuries. That too unsettled him. With Techno’s reputation for picking fights, it was no surprise that he would have one or two minor injuries, but the pig looked as if he had just come through an explosion. There hadn’t been any explosions near L’manburg or the SMP recently. They would have heard about it if there were. Suddenly, Techno spoke, pulling Tommy out of his thoughts. “So...how’s Wilbur been?” His tone seemed casual, but even Tommy could pick up on the cautious edge in Techno’s voice. It was far more cautious than the simple question warranted. “He’s been fine. Maybe a bit stressed.” Tommy glanced up to meet his older brother’s gaze. “Why are you asking?” “What, I can’t ask after my own brothers?” Techno joked. Tommy shrugged. “I don’t know, do what you want.” Yes, something was definitely off with Technoblade.

Techno wondered what was going through Tommy’s mind right now. The kid was smarter than he let on, and he had definitely picked up on Techno’s earlier comments. He wondered how much he had gathered though. He watched as Tommy pondered the matter. Finally, the teen finished bandaging his hand, and stood up. “Let’s go. The duel’s gonna start soon.” Techno nodded, stood up, and slung his cape over his shoulders. Coldly, Tommy opened the door and led him outside. Techno sighed. “Tommy, you aren’t mad cause I took your place in the duel, are you?” “What? No, of course not.” There was no sincerity to his voice though. “Look, Tommy, I get it. You’re defending Wilbur’s honor or whatever. But you’ve gotta learn to step aside and let other people help you Tommy. Don’t be some kind of foolish lone hero. You don’t need to sacrifice everything for everyone.” Tommy stopped mid-stride and turned to face his older brother. “What the hell happened to you man? You’re so...different. Since when did you care what I do?” “I’m just trying to make sure you don’t get in over your head, Tommy. I’ve seen what an uncontrolled ego can do. I don’t want that to happen to you. Just trust me on this Tommy.” There was silence for a moment. “You’ve really been gone a while, haven’t you Techno?” Tommy asked, as if just realizing how different his brother was now. “You’ve changed a lot.” “So have you,” Techno responded evenly. “Of course I have. I was eleven last time you came to visit.” Techno sighed. “Yeah, you were. I really should have come to visit sooner.” It hurt to see Tommy like this. Despite the war the teen was fighting, despite the recent betrayal of one of his heroes, Tommy still had that vibrant light in his eyes. That light had faded by time Techno had come to help Pogtopia. By time Wilbur had snapped, the light was gone.

Techno wanted so badly to pull Tommy aside and tell him that no matter how bad things got, he was always going to be a good kid. Tell him that no matter what, things would get better. But he knew about the butterfly effect. There was no way he was going to risk screwing things up anymore than they already had been when Techno had traveled through time. Still he put his hand on Tommy’s shoulder, drawing the boy’s attention. “Tommy-” he paused. “Look, no matter...no matter what happens, or how bad things get, you’re gonna make it through this. I promise.” Tommy simply raised an eyebrow. “Ok?” Tecno smiled softly, and they made their way to L’manburg’s front gate. Wilbur, Fundy, and Tubbo stood waiting for them.

Techno nodded in greeting and Wilbur returned. “Are you sure you want to do this Techno?” Wibur said. “There’s no shame in backing out. Dream’s a powerful enemy.” It was strange to hear Wilbur be so rational and collected. It was a surprisingly sharp contrast to the Wilbur Techno had spoken to just a few hours ago. The pig’s thoughts began to drift, and part of him wondered how many lives Wilbur had left. He knew Wilbur had lost one in Eret’s final control room, but he wondered where the other life had been lost. From what he knew of what had happened post-war, there wouldn’t have been many opportunities for Wilbur to lose a life. It had only been a year between when L’manburg won independence, and when Pogtopia had been formed. “Techno?” Wilbur prompted, pulling the pig out of his thoughts. “It’s ok if you don’t think you can face Dream.” “He’s The Blade!” Fundy exclaimed, drawing the group's attention to him. “He can take anyone!” “He can take anybody.” “Geez,” Techno said before he could stop himself. “You look so young.” Fundy’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean? We’ve never met.” “Um...You’re dad sends me pictures,” Techno said, hoping the panic wasn’t creeping into his voice. “Right, Wil?” “Um, sure.” Wilbur responded evenly, but Tecno caught the suspicious glance he sent Tommy. “Why don’t we get going. We wouldn’t want to keep Dream waiting.” Wilbur nodded, and the group set off.

As they walked off, Techno trailed behind, noticing the way Fundy and Wilbur paired up, and the way Tubbo and Tommy darted out ahead, throwing clumps of dead leaves at each other. Techno smiled, the sight of his family comforting. But it was different from the versions of them he had gotten to know over the last few months. They were more free, happier, as if they didn’t have the weight of the entire world pressing down on their shoulders. And he would protect his family, butterfly effect be damned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we got to see a little more of Techno's interactions with everyone. Do you think he's going slip up and reveal he's from the future?


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The duel

As they came over the hill, Techno could see a group of four people gathered at the other end of the bridge where he and Dream were to have their duel. He picked Dream out easily. It was hard to miss the bright white and green of the warrior’s outfit. It took him a moment to pick out George, seeing as how he wasn’t as familiar with the cabinet member. He hadn’t realized George had fought in the war for L’manburg. He figured there was no way Wilbur never would have given an enemy citizenship. Maybe Schlatt had given George the citizenship instead. It was still strange seeing George awake and present at a major event. “What’s George doing here?” he muttered to Tubbo. The teen glanced at him confusedly. “What do you mean? George is Dream’s right hand man.” “Oh.” The two reached the top of the stairway that led down to the bridge. Suddenly, Tubbo turned to him. “Wait, how do you know George? This is your first time meeting anyone from the SMP.” “Oh, um well, I made a point of learning who the major power players were when you guys moved here. You know, in case you needed me to overthrow a government,” Techno said with a wink. Tubbo snorted. “Nah, we just need you to help found one.” “Ew,” Techno said. He didn’t mind though. If L’manburg was important to his younger brothers, he would do everything he could to make sure nothing happened to it. The two teenagers had already been through enough. By now, they had reached the base of the stairway. Alongside Dream and George, Techno saw Sapnap and...was that Punz? Clearly he didn’t know about as much of the war as he had thought. Dream nodded politely once he caught sight of the group. “Technoblade,” was all he said in greeting. “Dream,” Techno returned. “Are you ready?” The warrior simply nodded. Techno simply slung his crossbow out of it’s holster on his back. Someone grabbed him by the arm.

He turned to see it was Wilbur who had stopped him. The man’s expression was calm, but Techno could see the worry in his eyes, and the stress lines that had formed during the war. “Techno, may I speak with you for a moment?” Wilbur led Techno to the side. “I appreciate you taking Tommy’s place. I really do. But you’re life’s not worth the revolution, Techno.” “Aw, c’mon. Technoblade never dies. I’ll be fine.” A smile teased at the corners of Wilbur’s mouth, but his expression quickly sombered. “If you’re sure.” Techno hesitated. “But, um, if things do go wrong, just take care of the kids, ok?” Wilbur nodded. “I promise.” “And spend some time with Fundy. He’s your son for pete’s sake.” “Speaking of, what did you mean when you said he looked young? You and I both know I never sent you pictures.” “Um...” Before Techno could come up with a plausible excuse, they were interrupted by Dream. “Soot, I’m not going to wait forever.” Wilbur sighed tiredly. “Apologies, Dream.” The two rejoined the group, and Techno and Dream took their place in the center of the bridge. Techno readied his crossbow before realizing his opponent was simply using a regular bow. “Oh, um, I don’t have a normal bow on me.” “That’s ok,” Fundy said. “I’ve got one.” The fox handed him the bow, and Techno ran his hand along the elegantly carved wooden instrument. It wasn’t the maxed-out crossbow he was used to, but it would do. Wilbur took his place on a small hill, overlooking the center of the bridge. “You will turn your back on each other.” The two opponents did so. “I will count ten paces. When I say fire, you will turn and fire on each other. Ready?” Techno and Dream nodded. Wilbur raised his arm. “One.” The two took a step forward. “Two.” Techno’s grip tightened on the bow. “Three.” The pig’s heart pounded in his ears. “Four.” Slowly, Techno knocked an arrow. “Five.” Another step. “Six.” Techno caught Tommy’s eyes. “Seven.” “Give him hell,” Tommy mouthed. “Eight.” Slowly, Techno raised his bow. “Nine.” He pulled the string back. “Ten.” Techno turned to face Dream. “Fire.” Techno released the arrow, and sent it flying straight towards Dream’s heart. Something hit Techno just below the ribs and sent a searing pain up his torso. That was ok. He could look at it later. His arrow had hit it’s mark. Dream was sprawled across the wooden path, blood pooling below him. After a moment, his body disintegrated and a breeze blew the remains of the green clad warrior away. George’s hands were shaking. Sapnap put a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. He’ll respawn. This was his first death.” George nodded. “Do you guys know where his respawn point is?” “I do,” Punz said. The three turned to go, and the L’manburgians watched them disappear over the horizon.

Once they were gone, cheers broke out among the members of the newly formed nations. Wilbur scooped up Fundy and swung him around in a joyous circle. Tommy and Tubbo let out whoops of triumph, and Tommy threw his arms around his best friend. Even Techno smiled at the prospect of just having won independence. “Techno you-you did it!” Tommy explained. Then he caught sight of something, and his eyes widened in fear. “Oh my god! Techno, you’re hurt!” Techno glanced down to see the shaft of an arrow sprouting from the spot just below his ribs. “Oh that’s not good.” His vision began to swim, and his knees buckled. Faintly, he could hear Wilbur say, “Hold on Techno. We’re gonna fix this.” The last thing he saw before he passed out was Tommy reaching for him desperately.

Slowly, Techno opened his eyes. He was laying shirtless on a soft bed in a small room. The soft glow of a lantern lit up the interior. He glanced down to check his newest wound. It had been cleaned and bandaged. Techno swung his legs over the side of the bed and slid his shirt on. He debated putting on his cape as well, but decided against it, figuring the cape was too heavy. He slid the door open silently to reveal a slightly larger room with low lying counters under the windows and a large wooden table in the middle. Wilbur, Tubbo, and Tommy stood around it. Fundy was nowhere to be seen. Wilbur had his face buried in his hands, jacket thrown across the table haphazardly. Tommy was staring intently at a spot on the table. Tubbo’s hand rested on his shoulder. Techno cleared his throat. The three revolutionaries’ heads snapped up. “Techno!” Tubbo cried, relief flooding his voice. “Techno,” Wilbur said. “How are you feeling?” “Better.” “Good,” Tommy said, an angry edge to his voice. “‘Cause we need to talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you know? I finished two chapter today. I hope you guys enjoy!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Love that we cannot have is the one that lasts the longest, hurts the deepest, and feels the strongest."

Fundy paced around the room nervously, tail flicking from side to side. George glanced up at him. “I’m sure he’ll be fine, Fundy. This was his first death. He’ll respawn. Just...try and relax.” It sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than anything. Fundy paused for a moment and tried to slow the beating of his heart. He had just about managed it before another thought crossed his mind. “How do we know that though? None of us knew him before we came to the SMP.” “I know, Fundy,” George said through gritted teeth. “I get it. I’m just as worried as you are, ok? I have no clue what’s going to happen. But your pacing is only making things worse. Just sit down and wait.” There was silence for a moment. “I-I...yeah-yeah, ok.” Fundy sat down on the bench next to George, and the other man scooted over to give him more room. They sat in silence for the next ten minutes or so. George fiddled with his glasses absentmindedly, and Fundy wrung his hands together, tail flicking nervously.

Finally, a door at the opposite end of the room creaked open. Fundy’s head snapped up, and he saw Dream standing in the doorway. His mask was off, and he had taken off his green hoodie. George’s shoulders slumped in relief, and he nodded in greeting. “Hey, Dream.” After a moment, Dream smiled. “Hey, George. Fundy.” The fox leapt to his feet and ran to Dream, throwing his arms around the man. “Thank the gods you’re ok!” Fundy sobbed into Dream’s shoulder. He pulled back and studied the warrior’s face. “How much do you remember?”

“I-there was a duel,” Dream said. “It-it was with Technoblade. He won didn’t he?” Fundy nodded. “L’manburg’s independent now,” he said with a grin. “Yeah, I guess they are. And you’re part of L’manburg,” Dream said slowly, as if it were just dawning on him. “Why are you so worried about me then?” Fundy’s brow furrowed. Memory loss wasn’t unheard of during respawns, but surely Dream wouldn’t have forgotten about him. “Babe, why wouldn’t I be worried?” “Babe?” Dream said, before a flicker of recognition seemed to cross his expression. “Oh, um right, yes.” The fox studied him a little more closely. “You are ok, aren’t you?” Fundy said. “I’m fine,” Dream said. “But Fundy, why didn’t you try to stop that duel?”

“What-what do you mean? Do you have any idea how suspicious that would look? Everyone would think I was the next Eret.” “Then just tell them we’re together.” Fundy pulled back. “Are you kidding? My dad would kill me if he found out we were seeing each other. And then he’d try to kill you. No. Absolutely not. It’s not an option.” “Really? Or are you just scared of what might happen?” Fundy flinched. “Dream, you know that’s not-” Clearly, the hurt must have shown on his face, because Dream pulled him in for a hug. “I’m sorry, Fundy. I wasn’t thinking. You’re right. There’s no way your father would be okay with you dating the enemy. Maybe...maybe once L’manburg gets up and running, and once things cool down, your father might be a little more open-minded.” “Gods, I hope so,” Fundy said. “Speaking of, I need to get back. Everyone’s probably wondering where I went. I’ll see you later, Dream.” He smiled and turned to leave. Fundy waved and skipped out the door. After a moment, Dream returned the wave, but Fundy was already gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's short, I know. But it's really important.
> 
> Also, yes, I am a shameless Fundywastaken shipper (the characters, not the people). This ship needs more plot relevance, so plot relevance it shall have.
> 
> Also, thank you all for your sweet comments. I read every single one, and they seriously make my day. Thank you so much. They're what encourage me to keep working on this story.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Lies and secrets. They are like a cancer in the soul. They eat away what is good, and leave only destruction behind."

Tommy twisted his hat between his hands. He was gritting his teeth so hard he was worried he might crack them. He stared down at the man he thought was his older brother. The stranger looked like Techno, sure. Same long pink hair, same scarred face, same serious expression. But he had been acting differently. It was as if he kept expecting Wilbur to suddenly turn on them, or like he knew how the war was supposed to end. Plus he had made strange comments. How was he supposed to know what Fundy looked like? Sure it was possible Wilbur had sent him pictures, but that didn’t seem like the kind of thing Wilbur would do, and everyone knew it. Plus, it was like he had already known Dream and the rest of the green-clad warrior’s team. And then there was the biggest red flag of all. What had Techno meant when he had said that he wasn’t going to watch another one of his brothers die?

Techno sat down on one of the counters underneath the windows. “What do we need to talk about?” He seemed calm enough, but Tommy heard the anxiety creeping into his voice. “Who are you really?” There was silence for a moment, but then slowly Techno’s widened. “Um, what do you mean, Tommy?” “Don’t play dumb,” Wilbur interjected. “We’re not stupid. And you’re definitely not my younger brother.” The Techno look-alike swore under his breath. “Ok, look. I am your brother. I promise. I’m...just not the version of myself you guys know.” “What the hell is that supposed to mean!?” Tommy exclaimed angrily. “How could I possibly not know my own brother?!” “I-look, Tommy. It’s complicated, ok? And I-I can’t really explain it. At least not right now. I just need you to trust me.” “Like we trusted Eret?” Tubbo said softly. Everyone fell silent. “You know what, we can figure out if he really is Techno,” Wilbur said. “How?” Tommy asked. “He just has to tell us something only Techno knows.”

Tommy caught the mischievous glance in Wilbur’s eyes. The teen realized Wilbur was also probably going to use this opportunity to completely embarrass Techno. “When Phil first brought you home,” Wilbur said, barely concealing his grin. “What was the first thing you did?” Techno glared at Wilbur, but after a moment he swallowed his pride and answered. “I challenged you to a sparring match and immediately tripped over my own feet and impaled myself with my sword. That’s also how I lost my first life.” There was silence for a moment, but then Tommy burst out laughing. “Wait, seriously?” Tubbo asked disbelieving. “Is that true, Wil?” Tommy asked, still laughing. Slowly, Wilbur’s face split into a huge grin. “Well, you’re definitely the real Techno. Phil and I are the only ones who know about that...incident.” “And no one else is ever gonna know about it,” Techno said. “Got it?” He had turned his gaze on Tommy and Tubbo, and the threat in his voice was clear. Tommy stopped laughing, and he and Tubbo nodded silently. “Good.” “Ok, so you’re the real Technoblade,” a voice said from the left of Tommy. The teen whirled to see that it was Fundy. Had he been standing there the whole time? “But something still seems off,” the fox said. “Yeah. You’re keeping secrets, Techno,” Wilbur said. Suddenly, Techno whirled on him. “You want to talk about secrets, Wilbur? How many lives do you have left, huh? Why don’t you tell your men how much stress you’re under. Why don’t you just admit you care about Tommy more than your own son?” Tommy flinched at the venom in his voice. Then, what Techno had said began to sink in.

“What is he talking about Wil? How-how many lives are you at?” Wilbur didn’t answer, jaw clenched. “Do-do you really care about Tommy more than me?” Fundy asked, voice small and scared. He didn’t want the answer to the question. Frankly, neither did Tommy. “How many lives are you at, Wilbur,” Tubbo asked. The general’s hands clenched into fists, and he muttered something under his breath. “Come on, don’t be shy,” Techno said. His voice was scathing. “They deserve to know. You’re not just their leader. You’re their brother. Fundy is your son, for Christ’s sake. How many lives do you have left?”

“One.”

It was silent as the weight of that single word sunk in. If Wilbur died now, it would be final. There would be no coming back. Tommy tried to hold back his tears. Why hadn’t Wilbur trusted him enough to tell him. Wasn’t he supposed to be Wilbur's right hand man? Surely he had a right to know. “You’re only at one life?” Fundy asked, voice shaking, like he didn’t want it to be real. Wilbur didn’t answer. Instead he turned to face Technoblade. “There. I told them. Are you happy now?” Despite seeming as if he hadn’t wanted to know the answer, Techno’s expression was shocked. “I knew you were at one life during the whole time we were in Pogtopia, but...” Techno murmured under his breath. “Wilbur, how long have you only been at one life?” Tubbo said. “S-since the final control room.” His voice was strained, like he was forcing himself to answer. “Why didn’t you tell us?” Tommy asked. He hated how hurt he sounded. “I didn’t want to worry you.” “Didn’t want to worry us!?” the teen exploded. “What the hell, Wilbur? I’m not a kid anymore. None of us are kids anymore! We’ve fought a freaking war. We’re not just your family. We’re your soldiers. We deserve to know if our leader is at risk. You don’t get to keep secrets like that and then tell us it was to freaking protect us! That’s not fair to us. It’s not fair to me.”

No one said anything. That was just as well. Tommy wasn’t sure he could trust himself to stay calm. Finally Fundy spoke up. “When did you lose it?” Wilbur’s head snapped up. “What?” “When did you lose your first life?” It was barely a whisper. “Was it during the war?” Tommy knew what Fundy was really asking though. Had any of them failed to protect Wilbur? Slowly, Wilbur’s shoulders slumped, and he shook his head. “No. No, none of you guys are to blame. It was before I even moved to the SMP.” “How?” Tubbo asked. “How did you lose it?” “A-a falling out with an old friend. I don’t want to talk about it.” No one pushed him. Finally, Wilbur turned to Techno. “How did you know about that, Techno?” Then he answered his own question. “You know what’s going to happen, don’t you? You’re not from this time.” Slowly, Techno shook his head. “No. I think I’m from the future.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy, this was a fun one too write. I love drama. It's so fun.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We live in the world our questions create"

Silence. Techno wasn’t sure what he had been expecting. It was definitely something that required a moment to process. “Um...” Tubbo said, with an attempt at a laugh. “What are you talking about Technoblade? That’s-that’s impossible, right?” “I mean, it would explain a lot,” said Fundy. “Wait,” Tommy interjected. “If you’re actually from the future...” he hesitated. “What do you wanna ask me, Tommy?” Techno said. “Does one of us die?” Techno cursed silently. Of all the questions they could have asked him. He didn’t answer. “Technoblade?” Tubbo asked. “Why aren’t you saying anything?” “Technoblade,” Tommy said, force behind his words. “Which one of us dies?” He didn’t say anything. He couldn’t risk the butterfly effect, but also...how was he supposed to tell Tommy that his older brother, his leader, and his hero was going to die, and there was nothing anyone could have done to stop it.

Finally, Wilbur broke the silence. “It’s probably me. I mean, if you think about it, it would make the most sense-” “Stop it!” Tommy cut him off. “You’re not going to die, ok? I’ll make sure of it!” He shot a glare Techno’s way. “Even if it means I have to change the whole future, got it?” There was silence. Then, after a moment, Techno said, “I forgot how determined you used to be. No wonder Dream thought you were gonna beat Schlatt.” The pig slammed his mouth shut. Crap. Why did he have to keep revealing things about the future? Tommy’s brow furrowed. “Who’s Schlatt?” Techno turned to Wilbur. Techno had never seen Wilbur so angry. Apparently, neither had Tommy. “Whoa, Wilbur, why do you hate this Schlatt character so much?” Wilbur’s fingers dug into the wood of the table. “I don’t want to talk about it.” “What did he do to you?” Fundy asked. Wilbur muttered something under his breath. “We can’t hear you,” Tubbo said. “I said,” Wilbur growled. “That Schlatt killed me.” “Oh,” Tubbo said. “Like I said, I don’t want to talk about it.” Wilbur grabbed his coat, and stormed out the door. No one followed. Finally Techno spoke up. “Well, if that’s all you guys wanna know, I’ll go train for a bit.” He waited a moment, but then he too left.

“I wonder,” Tubbo muttered, and walked into the back room of the camarvan. Fundy followed after him. Tubbo was kneeling in front of one the chests, a large, worn book perched precariously on top of it. “What you reading, Tubbo?” The teen startled and whirled around. He relaxed when he saw the fox. “Oh, it’s just you, Fundy. You scared me.” “What are you reading?” “Ah, nothing. I’m just trying to figure out how Technoblade could possibly be from the future. I mean, if you think about it, time travel shouldn’t be possible yet. We simply haven’t reached that level in technology, and there’s not anything magical that could wield that much power...” he trailed off as if something had just occurred to him. “Unless...” Tubbo flipped to a section near the end of the book and began scanning the page. Slowly, his eyes widened. “Oh my god,” he muttered under his breath. Fundy sat down next to him. “What is it?” “Fundy...” Tubbo sucked in a breath, as if he was scared to say what his revelation was. “I think Technoblade might be a dreamon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I definitely could have made this longer, but I like my cliffhangers way too much.
> 
> Also, that Fundywastaken wedding, huh?


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "The best mirror is an old friend"

Tommy scanned the walls for the figure he knew would be sitting atop them. He saw him sitting on the eastern side of the wall, facing the land beyond either the SMP or L’manburg. He scaled the wall and sat next to the figure. For a moment, there was just silence. “So,” Tommy said. “Technoblade’s from the future.” Wilbur didn’t respond. “Look, Wil, if you want me to go, just tell me.” Tommy waited another moment, but Wilbur didn’t say anything. He stood up to leave, but Wilbur’s voice drew him back.

“Jschlatt was an old friend of mine. He and I were thick as thieves. You wonder why I’m so good bridging over lava? It was his idea to go to a place where the lava level was constantly rising. It was a fun day,” Wilbur said with a smile. It quickly faded though. “But...” Tommy prompted. “But after that, I-I realized just how sadistic he was. At first, I thought it was fine, you know? Just a one off thing, but then he started pulling me into more and more dangerous stunts...and eventually I almost lost one of my lives. When I finally confronted him about it...” Wilbur grimaced. “He had a diamond sword. I didn’t have any armor.” “Oh,” Tommy said. “You know, it’s my own fault really,” Wilbur said. “I should have seen it coming. I-I genuinely thought he was getting better. Guess I was just too blind to see what he had really become. And then after everything with Eret...” Wilbur shook his head ruefully. “Maybe I’m just destined to die from betrayal everytime. Maybe I’m just going to be killed by the people I love.”

“No,” Tommy interjected. “I’m not going to let that happen. You’ve always got me. I promise. And everyone here cares about you.” Wilbur nodded listlessly, and after a moment, Tommy pulled his older brother into a hug. “I’m sorry that happened to you, Wil. I’m sorry I wasn't there to protect you.” Wilbur glanced up at the teen, a half smirk on his face. “TommyInnit showing emotion. I never thought I’d see the day.” Tommy shoved him playfully. “I’m not some unfeeling monster, you know.” “Yeah, I know. That’s why you’re my right hand man. I couldn’t do this without you, Tommy.” “I know. I couldn’t do this without me either.” “Oh, shut up,” Wilbur complained jokingly. Tommy returned the smile with a laugh. However, it faded as he turned his gaze to the land outside L’manburg. “Seriously though, Wil. We’re here for you. Just promise me you won’t keep a major secret like that again.” “I promise. I don’t think this new version of Techno would let me keep them anyways. How did he even know I was at one life anyways?” “You’re only at one life, Soot?” a voice said from behind them.

The two leapt to their feet and whirled around. Standing on the parapets behind them was Dream. To his right stood George, and on his left was Sapnap. Eret was behind them, almost as if he was trying to hide. There was no disguising the bright red and gold of his king’s regalia though. “Dream,” Wilbur said, his voice even. “What are you doing here? If you recall, you lost the duel. L’manburg is independent now.” “Yeah, about that. You see, I may have lost the duel, but Tommy challenged me for L’manburg’s independence. And I don’t know if you remember, Soot, but it was Technoblade who bravely took his place,” Dream said with a sneer. There was silence as Dream’s words sunk in. “So, what?” Wilbur said. “You don’t recognize us as independent just because someone else fought in Tommy’s stead?” “No. I don’t recognize you as independent because the man I dueled wasn’t actually a citizen of L’manburg.” “Fine!” Tommy shouted, taking a step closer to the group. “We can fight right now then! I’ll duel you myself this time. Techno’s not here to stop me. Let’s go, you green idiot!”

“Nah,” Dream said languidly. “I already had one duel for your guy’s independence this week. Another one would just be boring.” “Ok. Dream, why don’t we go down to the Camarvan and negotiate something we can both agree to,” Wilbur said, panic creeping into his voice. “I guess we could do that. But, you see, I’m not really in the mood to talk. Besides, you won’t have the camarvan for long.” “What the hell are you talking about?” Tommy said, glancing towards the van. He spotted Techno on the lake shore, training. Distantly, he wondered where Tubbo and Fundy were. Suddenly, his attention snapped back to Dream as the warrior held out his hand, palm up. In it rested a small black object with a red button at one end of it. It took Tommy a moment to place it. The device was a detonator. Once more he glanced at the camarvan, and the pieces clicked into place. He lunged for the green-clad warrior, but it was too late. Dream pressed the button, and then Tommy heard an explosion. It was small, but the shockwave knocked him back. With a scream, he fell to his knees and watched as the rubble rained down onto the grass.

He had caught a glimpse through the windows of the van. 

Tubbo and Fundy had still been in there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha, cliffhangers go brrr


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I have a past, but I don't live there anymore"

Tubbo scrambled to the other end of the room and threw open the ender chest. He pulled out a small, worn notebook and a beat-up jacket. Quickly he flipped through the pages, eyes scanning the hastily written text. “Tubbo, what makes you think Techno is a dreamon?” Fundy asked. “Time-travel shouldn’t be possible,” Tubbo replied. “Even if he’s not a dreamon, one would still be involved in him ending up here.” “Well, how do you know it’s not someone else then?” Tubbo shook his head and began pulling out a beat-up jacket. “If any one else were a dreamon, I would have recognized it. Everything fits with Technoblade, though. The sheer amount of combat prowess the guy has, the bloodlust. Trust me, I know a dreamon when I see one.”

Tubbo slipped on the jacket and Fundy spotted a large golden logo on the back. It looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t place it. Tubbo pulled a satchel out of the ender chest and handed it to Fundy. “Hold this.” Fundy did as he was told. “How do you recognize a dreamon?” the fox asked as Tubbo moved to the brewing stands in the other room. “It varies from dreamon to dreamon, but bloodlust and violent reactions tend to be a dead give-away.” Tubbo paused and thought for a moment. “As well as magical abilities no one should be able to have.” “So you think Technoblade is a dreamon just because he’s a warrior?” “Well, I suppose partially. But have you ever considered his nickname? He’s called the Blood God.” Tubbo flipped to a page in the notebook he was holding and showed it to Fundy. The page was hastily scribbled in two hand-writings, and was spotted with something red. Fundy really hoped it wasn’t blood. “The Blood God was one of the first dreamons I ever fought,” Tubbo said, like he was remembering something painful. “He’s very powerful, and definitely capable of something like time-travel.” “You think Techno is possessed by this Blood God dreamon?” Tubbo nodded as he put potions into the satchel Fundy was holding. Then the rest of what Tubbo had said registered.

“Wait, what do you mean you’ve fought dreamon’s before?” “I’m a professional dreamon hunter,” Tubbo said over his shoulder. “My father was too.” Now Fundy recognized the logo. It was the Dreamon Hunter’s insignia. He had been obsessed with them as a kid. “You’re a dreamon hunter?!” he said, childish awe in his voice. “That’s so cool! How long have you been fighting dreamons?” “A while,” Tubbo said, but this time there was none of the brightness Fundy had come to expect from the younger teen. Clearly he had hit a nerve. Fundy cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject. “So how do we know if The Blade is actually a dreamon?” “Some kind of emotional test. We need to show him something he hates and see how he reacts to it. If he’s just confused, we know he’s not possessed. But if he tries to kill us, it’s definitely a dreamon.” Tubbo tossed a couple of iron ingots into the satchel along with enough food for the both of them. “The problem is, Technoblade moved out before I even met Phil. I don’t know what he hates, and I don’t think he’d be willing to tell me. I’ll have to ask Tommy.”

Fundy watched as Tubbo gathered more supplies, and glanced out the window absentmindedly. He noticed a group of figures standing on the east wall. He squinted, trying to make them out. Two of them were Wilbur and Tommy; the colors of L’manburg’s uniform were easy to identify even from a distance. The others were harder to make out. He saw a thin red ribbon, a blue shirt, and bright white and green. His breath caught. He could recognize Dream’s outfit anywhere. He turned to Tubbo. “Hey, quick question,” Fundy said. “Why is Dream on our walls?” Tubbo glanced up, brow furrowing. “What do you mean?” Fundy pointed, and Tubbo followed his gaze. “Dunno, maybe they’re here to negotiate our independence or something,” Tubbo said. He didn’t sound too convinced. “Maybe. But you’d think Wilbur would have called a meeting for that.” Then, Fundy saw Tommy lunge for Dream. “What’s going-” he never got to finish his sentence though, as the ground exploded beneath his feet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I really like my cliffhangers.
> 
> I think I've really gotten into the groove of this story. I might go back and edit the earlier chapters. (Don't hold me to that.) If you like my writing style and surprisingly small fandoms, feel free to check out my other works. You might just find something you like.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "For me, family always comes first. I would do anything to protect them."

Techno swung his blade in a wide arc, immediately turning into another strike. Despite the pull at his ribs, he didn’t stop. He needed time to think. He had messed up when he had told them he was from the future. He knew that. He was probably making things even worse than they had been when he’d left. But if it meant the chance to save his brothers, he didn’t care. He brought his sword around once more, but since he wasn’t paying attention, it slammed into the trunk of a tree with a dull thud. He sighed and pulled it out. He was too stressed to train properly.

He sat down on the grass and began cleaning the sword. It was still covered in blood and ash from the battle with L’manburg. Methodically, he wiped it down as his thoughts drifted to the events of the battle. Everything was so different when L’manburg had first been founded. He had thought Tommy was a bright-eyed kid when he’d joined Pogtopia. He had been chaotic and full of energy and mostly happy, albeit with the hard edge one acquired only after they’d seen countless battles. But the Tommy from this time seemed so innocent. He still had the hard edge to him, and frankly, Techno would be more worried if he didn’t. But this Tommy didn’t carry the weight of entire nations on his shoulders. He didn’t have to, Techno supposed. He was Wilbur’s right-hand man, and that was all he had to be.

Absentmindedly, he glanced up at the walls where he had seen Wilbur sitting. Tommy had joined him. Good. Techno didn’t think it was good to keep someone as volatile as Schlatt a secret. Distantly, he wondered if he should call Philza, ask him for help sorting everything out. He dismissed it pretty quickly though. The only time Phil had actually gotten involved in their lives since he’d adopted Tommy was when Wilbur had snapped. He began to sharpen his sword, and glanced back up at the walls. There were four more people along with Tommy and Wilbur now. One was George, one was Eret, still in his king’s regalia, and one was...Sapnap, maybe? He wasn’t sure. He recognized the fourth figure though. It was Dream. Slowly, Techno got to his feet and secured his pig’s skull mask. Dream probably wouldn’t try anything now that L’manburg had its independence, but Techno didn’t want to take the risk. Dream raised his hand, and suddenly Tommy lunged for him. Techno’s jaw clenched, and he moved towards the wall. Then, the ground rumbled underneath his feet, and chunks of plastic and metal went flying past him.

He whirled around to see a small crater where the camarvan had been, water flowing into it. Tubbo was stumbling around in the wreckage. At some point he had put on a dark green jacket, and he was clutching a leather satchel for dear life. Fundy was nowhere to be seen. Techno sprinted to Tubbo’s side. “Are you okay?” Tubbo nodded listlessly. “Fundy,” the teen paused, as if trying to figure something out. “He was dead in the center of it. Where’s his respawn?” Techno shook his head. “Dunno. What happened?” Tubbo pointed towards Dream, who was now standing over Tommy, gloating. Techno nodded in understanding. “Go take care of Fundy. He’s gonna be pretty disoriented when he wakes up.” Tubbo nodded, and scrambled towards the gate. Fundy must have set his respawn while he was out gathering material. Thank God. Techno didn’t want Dream going after anyone else. He hefted his blade and began to scale the wall.

“Dream,” he growled once he reached the top. The warrior glanced at him, and Techno noticed he had his sword pressed to Tommy’s throat. The other members of his team had their weapons drawn as well, although Eret looked fairly uncomfortable with the idea of holding a crossbow to Wilbur’s temple. “Techno,” Dream replied, voice far more chipper than the scene warranted. “Nice to see you again. You seem to have recovered nicely from the duel.” Techno lowered his own sword towards Dream, but the warrior positioned so that Tommy was effectively blocking any attack Techno might try. “Ah ah ah,” Dream warned, pressing his sword closer to Tommy’s neck. The teen gulped. “Let him go, Dream,” Techno growled, eyes darting around, looking for anything he could use. There was nothing. “I don’t think I will,” Dream said. “You see, Technoblade, you might not know this, but Tommy and Wilbur here are revolutionaries. I gave them a chance to surrender peacefully, but they wanted war. This is just what happens in war. Now, if you don’t want me to slice open stupid little Tommy’s throat here, you’ll put that sword down.” Dream waited a moment, but Techno only tightened his grip on his sword. “I said...” Dream pressed the sword tighter against Tommy’s throat, and this time, small drops of blood began to pool. “Put the sword down.” “Um...Technoblade?” Tommy pleaded, voice laced with panic. And that’s when Techno’s blood began to boil.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly love Techno's character. He's so hard for me to pin down, but it's so rewarding whenever I do. Anyways, leave your thoughts or your incoherent screaming.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles."  
> -Sun Tzu, The Art Of War
> 
> (I couldn't stop myself.)

Techno’s jaw clenched. “Don’t worry, Tommy. I’m going to get you out of here.” Slowly Techno raised his hands in a sign of surrender. “Sapnap,” Dream said. “Disarm him.” Tommy watched as Sapnap nodded, and moved towards the man in the pig mask. Tommy smiled. Sapnap reached for the sword Techno was holding, but suddenly, the warrior adjusted his stance and brought the blade down on Sapnap’s shoulder. He cried out in pain and stumbled back. George leapt in front of him, his own crossbow loaded. Dream took a step back unconsciously, and pressed his sword tighter against Tommy’s throat.

The teen struggled for air, but despite that, he tried to kick Dream somewhere painful. It didn’t work. “Stop struggling or I will kill you,” Dream hissed in his ear. “Screw you,” Tommy spat. “Let him go,” Technoblade growled, eyes glowing furiously behind his mask. “Put the sword down,” Dream returned. “I’ve already wounded one of your men. If you don’t want this to be a slaughter, let Tommy go.” “Nah, I don’t think I will,” Dream said casually. Tommy caught the way his grip on the sword tightened, though. He couldn’t help the smirk that was forming. “Wipe the floor with them, Techno.” Techno returned the smile, and suddenly he lunged for George.

He swept the man’s feet out from under him, and struck a glancing blow to George’s side. Sapnap tried to defend him, but Techno disarmed him quickly. With a growl, Dream tossed Tommy to the side. The teen stumbled, and suddenly, there was air beneath his feet. He was falling. He opened his mouth to scream, but something caught the collar of his jacket, and he was suspended in midair. He twisted around and saw that it was Wilbur who had caught him. Eret fired an arrow at them half-heartedly, but it missed by a wide berth. With a grunt, Wilbur pulled him back up, and he regained his footing. Quickly, he drew his crossbow and aimed it at Eret. The king’s grip tightened on his own crossbow. Wilbur hefted his sword. “Don’t even try it, traitor.” There was silence for a moment, but then Eret holstered the weapon. “Look, you have every right to be mad at me,” he said. “Oh shut the hell up,” Tommy snapped. “You freaking betrayed us, Eret. You’re lucky I haven’t shot you yet.” The king sighed. “I know. And I have no right to ask you to listen to me. But I am begging you. Please, I didn’t know Dream was going to kill you. The deal was just to scare you into surrendering.” “Tell it to someone who cares,” Wilbur said. “Now get the hell off my land.” Eret nodded, and jumped into the lake on the other side of the walls. They watched him go.

Suddenly, Tommy caught a glint of blue out of the corner of his eye. “Wilbur, look out!” Wilbur spun around, raising his sword, but he was too slow. Sapnap dug his diamond sword into Wilbur’s arm. Tommy lunged for him, and slammed the butt of his crossbow into the older man’s chest. Sapnap stumbled back, and Tommy quickly fired off a shot. It hit Sapnap in the leg, and he fell to his knees. Tommy pulled Wilbur to his feet. “We need to get you patched up. How bad did he get you?” “I’m fine, Tommy,” Wilbur said, but Tommy could hear the strain in his voice. “No, you’re not. And I’m gonna be useless if I have to worry about defending you the whole time. Don’t be stubborn, Wil.” “Yeah, you’re right,” Wilbur sighed. “But we need to help Techno. Even he can’t take three people at once. Especially if one of them’s Dream.” Tommy nodded, and drew his own sword. Techno and Dream were locked in battle. It seemed to be an even match, despite the fact that Techno wasn’t wearing any armor, and Dream was fully geared up. But Tommy could see how much effort it was taking Technoblade just to hold his own. If George or Sapnap recovered, Techno wouldn’t stand a chance. “We need to keep George and Sapnap distracted,” Tommy said. Wilbur nodded, and the two once more prepared to leap into battle.

Technoblade was focused on keeping Dream’s attention away from the others. He and Dream were surprisingly evenly matched as swordsmen. He hadn’t realized how good of a warrior Dream had been while he was still fighting for Pogtopia though. This version of Dream’s skill was almost laughable compared to that. Unfortunately, most of Techno’s prowess came from his maxed-out gear, whereas Dream didn’t have that problem. The warrior was also in full netherite armor. Dream brought his sword down on Techno’s unprotected middle, but the pig simply blocked it.

The force of the blow sent him stumbling back though, and he almost lost his grip on his own sword. Dream took the opportunity to unload his crossbow and fire off a shot. It grazed Techno’s arm. The two continued fighting, but after a moment, Techno’s strikes began to slow down. Numbness was spreading down his arm from where Dream’s arrow had hit him. He cursed. Dream must have hit him with a poison arrow. Distracted by his injury, Techno didn’t even notice that Dream had readied for another attack. Suddenly, Techno’s feet flew out from under him, and he crashed onto the blackstone ramparts. His sword was knocked out of his hand, and fell into the lake on L’manburg’s side of the walls. He kicked at Dream, but the warrior simply stepped aside. “I’ll give you this, Technoblade,” Dream said. “You fight well. You’re almost worthy of my title. But it was a stupid idea to challenge me.” Dream kicked Techno in the chest, and sent him tumbling off the wall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell fight scenes aren't my strong suit? I mean, I love writing them, but ugggghhhh


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Anger can be a bitterness that devours your soul while righteous indignation is morally driven."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: A somewhat graphic depiction of an injury. Please use caution. Starts at "Le's finish this" and ends at "Techno glanced back"
> 
> Also, I changed my format for this chapter, so yeah.

Techno slammed into the ground, and he heard his ribs crack. The pain sent a jolt through him, and the fog cleared from his brain. The poison was still slowing him down, but it was easier to think now.

An arrow thudded into the dirt next to his head, and he rolled out of the way. He stumbled to his feet, and sprinted for the lake. Something hit the ground behind him, and he glanced back. It was Dream, crossbow drawn and mask slightly askew. Techno dove for the shore of the lake where he had dropped his sword.

He saw it glinting on the bottom of the lake about a foot away. He reached for it, but an arrow nearly grazed his hand. He yanked it back instinctively, and turned to look back at Dream. The green clad warrior was getting closer, crossbow now shouldered. “Techno!” Tommy called down to him.

The boy was locked in battle with Sapnap, who, despite his battered appearance, was holding his own. Tommy unloaded his crossbow, and tossed it down blindly. Techno lunged for it and barely managed to catch it. In one fluid motion, he loaded it with a spare bolt and shot it straight at Dream’s face. It caught the edge of the warrior’s mask, and the white ceramic cracked in half.

Techno tossed the now useless crossbow to the side, and grabbed his sword from the bottom of the lake. Someone hit the ground next to Dream. It was Sapnap. With a curse, Dream helped him to his feet. “Sapnap, are you ok?” He nodded, but even from this distance, Techno could see he was about to pass out.

To his right, Tommy hopped off the ladder that was leaning against the wall and scooped up his crossbow. He reloaded it steadily and trained it on Dream and Sapnap. “Are you ok, Technoblade?” the teen said, not taking his eyes off his opponents. “What did Dream hit you with?” “Poison arrow,” Techno said, hefting his sword. Tommy handed him a bottle of milk. The pig downed it in one gulp. “Let’s finish this.”

Suddenly, an arrow sprouted from Tommy’s shoulder. He screamed in pain, and his knees buckled underneath. “Tommy!” Techno caught him, and tried his best to gauge the injury. The arrow protruded from the other side of his shoulder, and Tommy’s uniform quickly became slick with blood.

Techno glanced back at Dream, thinking the warrior must have somehow gotten the drop on them, but he looked just as surprised as Techno had been. Then his face split into a huge grin as he pulled off his mask. Techno followed his gaze towards the top of the walls, where Wilbur and George were standing.

Wilbur had his sword to George’s throat, his expression absolutely furious. “Thanks, George,” Dream called up, before turning his attention back to the Techno and Tommy. “Guess I’ll just finish you two off now.”

Gently, Techno laid Tommy down on the grass. “Hang in there, Tommy. We’re gonna patch you up.” Despite the pain he must have been in, Tommy smiled. “I’ll be fine. Just kick the crap out Dream for me, will you?” Techno nodded and turned to face Dream.

Fundy came to with a gasp. Quickly he checked himself over for injuries, and slumped back onto the bed once he found none. His jacket was ripped to shreds. Wilbur would have to make him a new one. He swung his legs over the bed, and noticed he was in the little cave room he and Tubbo had set up when they had gone mining the other day. He must have respawned. Then it all came flooding back to him. Dream, the explosion, L’manburg. With a gasp, he leapt to his feet, and threw open the door.

Tubbo was standing outside, sword raised, ready to protect against any stray mobs who might stumble on Fundy’s respawn point. “Tubbo, what happened?” The teen whirled around, but relaxed once he realised it was the fox who had spoken. “Fundy, thank god. Dream blew up the camarvan. Techno sent me to make sure you respawned ok.” “And you trusted him? Even though you think he might be a Dreamon?” Tubbo cursed. “I forgot about that. We need to get back to L’manburg. Now.” Fundy nodded, and the two took off running.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the gate of L’manburg. They could hear the sounds of fighting from within, and a column of smoke rose from near the lake. Suddenly, Sapnap went running past them with a distinct limp. The two raised their weapons, but Sapnap paid them no mind. Fundy and Tubbo shared a look, and sprinted into the city.  
The first thing they noticed was the absolute fury with which Technoblade was attacking Dream. The green-clad warrior was barely able to keep Techno from killing him. George was nowhere to be found. Then they noticed Tommy.

“Tommy!” Tubbo yelped, rushing to his side. Fundy knelt down next to him and Wilbur. The teen was bleeding from a wound in his shoulder. Wilbur had pulled the arrow out, and was doing his best to stop the bleeding, but it was clear that Tommy was in desperate need of a healing potion.

Fundy remembered he had respawn with Tubbo’s satchel. He began searching through the bag, desperately hoping Tubbo had put a healing potion in there. Finally, he found one and handed it to Wilbur. “Here, Wil.” The general nodded in thanks, and force fed Tommy the potion. No one relaxed until they saw the wound begin to close.  
Fundy glanced back to see Dream retreating, his mask shattered into pieces on the grass a few feet away. As Dream turned to flee, Fundy noticed small, black veins underneath Dream’s eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to BlueQuills for the formatting suggestion. It actually helped immensely. I think I'm going to stick to my usual format for every other type of scene though.


	12. Chapter 12

“What the hell, Dream?!” Sapnap glanced up as the doors to the community house were thrown open. Fundy stormed in, tail flicking angrily. Dream glanced up too, then went back to patching up his hoodie. “Oh, hey Fundy.” “Don’t ‘hey Fundy’ me,” the fox growled. “You blew up my house!” Dream glanced up again. “No I didn’t. I blew up the camarvan.” “Yeah! I live in the camarvan!” “Well I’m sure you can rebuild it,” Dream said with a shrug of his shoulders. “That’s not the point, Dream!” Fundy snapped. “The point is-” Fundy cut himself off and forced himself to take a deep breath. Sapnap had seen the pair argue a few times over the course of the war. He figured it was inevitable, seeing as how the two were on opposite sides of a war. But he had never seen such raw fury and pain in Fundy’s eyes. “I was in there, Dream. I was in the camarvan when you triggered the explosives.”

Sapnap’s eyes widened in shock, but he noticed that Dream’s expression didn’t change. Fundy must have noticed it too. “D-did you know I was in there?” The fox’s voice trembled, and Sapnap had the inexplicable urge to give the younger man a hug. Dream didn’t say anything. “Babe?” Fundy prompted. “I did know you were in the camarvan.” It was cold, even for Dream. Slowly, Fundy took a step back. “You-you knew? Then why did you blow it up?!” “I knew you would respawn,” Dream said with a shrug. He turned his attention back to his hoodie. “How?!” Fundy exploded. “I've never told anyone how many lives I’m at! Do you even know how many lives I’m at?” Dream didn’t answer. Fundy grabbed him by the shoulder, and forced Dream to face him. “Do you know how many lives I’m at?” Slowly, Dream shook his head. “One. I’m at one life now, Dream.”

There was silence. Suddenly, Fundy’s demeanor changed. Instead of the furious anger he had barged in with, Fundy’s gaze was now riddled with suspicion. “Take off your mask.” “What?” Dream asked, utterly confused. “I said, take off your mask.” “What? No!” Dream said. “You’ve seen my face plenty of times. Why do you want me to take off my mask all of the sudden?” “Babe, please,” Fundy said, voice softening. “I just-I need to know.” There was a moment of hesitation, but then, slowly, Dream removed the ceramic mask.   
It was the same familiar face Sapnap was used to. Sweeping blond hair, light freckles, thin sweeping scar across the bridge of Dream’s nose, same green eyes. If he thought about it, maybe the Dream’s eyes seemed a bit darker-colored, but he figured it was just a trick of the light. For a moment, Fundy peered at Dream’s face intently, but after a moment, found nothing amiss. His shoulders slumped with visible relief. “What the hell was that about Fundy?” Dream exploded, putting his mask back into place.

Fundy kicked at the ground awkwardly. “I...um...I may have thought you were a dreamon for a minute there.” He chuckled nervously, clearly embarrassed by the idea. “I’m glad you're not one though!” Fundy said quickly. “What even is a dreamon?” Dream said. The term seemed familiar to Sapnap, but he couldn’t quite place it. Discreetly, he pulled out his dictionary. “It’s not important,” Fundy said. “Probably just something Tubbo made up.” Sapnap found the word in his dictionary, and quickly scanned the entry. “Dreamon-A mythical creature said to possess competent warriors and bring mass destruction and death.” Sapnap quickly put the book up and turned his attention back to Fundy and Dream. “I’m still mad about the explosion,” Fundy was saying. “But I get it. Like it or not, we’re fighting a war. Just...be careful next time, ok?” Dream nodded. “I promise.” Fundy nodded, and turned to leave.

Dream was certainly a competent warrior. And he had been acting strange ever since just before his and Techno’s duel. It seemed like he kept trying to match the people around him to others, and he had been spacing out more and more. He might have to keep an eye on Dream. George interrupted, coming down the stairs. “George!” Sapnap said, shooting to his feet. “Did you respawn okay?” George nodded. Sapnap’s shoulders slumped in relief. He had been worried after he had seen Technoblade kill George. “How many lives do you have left?” Dream asked, voice devoid of any emotion. “One,” George said with a sigh. “I see,” Dream said, and once again turned his attention back to his hoodie’s repairs. Sapnap wasn’t sure, but for a second, he thought he saw Dream smirk.

Yes, he would certainly have to keep an eye on the man.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you can't tell, I don't really watch Sapnap much...or at all. I really hope I'm getting his character right, but this probably the only chapter he's gonna narrate.


	13. Chapter 13

Tubbo flipped through the pages of the journal absentmindedly, scanning the faded text, various bits of memory floating through his mind. But not the one. Never that memory. Tubbo never wanted to think of that horrible night ever again. But he had to. If he was right about Technoblade being possessed by the Blood God, which he was sure he was, then he needed all the information that he could get. He reached the middle of the journal, but his hand refused to turn to the next page. He hadn’t looked at it since that night. Before he realized it, his fist had tightened on the spine of the book, and he had begun tracing his sword’s hilt. He’d gotten much better with it since that day, but he still hated using it. He couldn’t give it up for some reason though. It felt like he needed it by his side, even if all it did was bring him pain.

Suddenly, he realized someone was standing behind him. He leapt to his feet and drew his sword awkwardly. The person threw their hands up in surrender. He recognized the green bandanna immediately. “Oh, hey Tommy,” he said, sheepishly putting away the sword. “You scared me.” “Yeah, I figured.” The teen noticed the journal that Tubbo had accidentally dropped to the ground. “What’s that?” Tubbo quickly scooped it up and tucked it into his uniform jacket. “It’s nothing!”

Tommy raised an eyebrow, but he knew from experience not to push it. Tubbo didn’t keep many secrets. If there was something he didn’t want the others to know about, Tommy would respect that. “So, whatcha doing, Tubbo?” “Just...Just research,” the teen said, clearly avoiding the question. “Actually, Tommy, I have something to ask you.” Tommy crossed his arms. “What do you wanna know?” “What’s Technoblade’s greatest fear?” Tommy choked in surprise. “W-what? Why do you want to know that?” Tubbo shrugged. “No reason.” “No! You can’t just not tell me why! Do you have any idea what the Blade would do to me if he found out I was just giving away his greatest fear?!” “Something bad?” Tubbo guessed. Then the younger teen sighed, shoulders drooping tiredly. “If you can’t tell me, I get it, Tommy. Just, please...I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t need it.”

Tommy hesitated. He could see the pleading in Tubbo’s eyes, but more importantly, he could see the fear. As much as he teased Tubbo for being a scaredy cat, Tommy had to admit that Tubbo was one of the bravest people he knew. If Tubbo was scared, Tommy usually took that as his cue to start panicking. “Something really big is going down isn’t it?” Tommy asked, fear creeping into his voice. The younger teen simply nodded. Then Tommy caught a glimpse of the jacket he was wearing under his uniform. It was dark green, with traces of gold on the arms. Tommy’s first thought was about how hot the outfit must have been, having on the uniform’s dress shirt and coat along with the green jacket. But then Tommy realized he recognized it. Tubbo had worn it for weeks after Phil had taken him in.

“This has something to do with what happened before you met Phil, doesn’t it?” he asked, tone softening. The guarded look went out of Tubbo’s eyes, and he just slumped to the ground. Slowly he nodded. Tommy sighed reluctantly. “Techno hates peer pressure. He’ll do anything if you pressure him into it, even just a little.” Tommy hesitated. “He also loves potatoes, you know, just in case you need to set a trap.” Tubbo glanced up at him, eyes shining with gratitude. “Don’t you dare tell him I told you though,” Tommy said. “And don’t you dare ask for a favor like this again.” Tubbo nodded, smiling slightly, and as Tommy turned away, he couldn’t disguise his relief at seeing Tubbo feel better.

Tubbo had called Fundy to meet him in the ruins of the camarvan. He’d opened to a page in his journal, which detailed a simple trap. “What is it?” Fundy asked, scanning the diagram to figure out what materials they would need to gather. The trap was a simple one by two box made of stone, closed off with an iron door. “Tommy gave me an idea earlier,” Tubbo said. “It’s a trap designed specifically for the Blood God.” When he saw Fundy’s confused expression, Tubbo explained. “He hates being trapped. If Technoblade is actually possessed by him, the trap will reveal him for sure.” “How do you know?” Fundy asked, crafting the door with the blocks he already happened to have on him. “I’ve used it myself. Designed it, actually. Worked like a charm.” Fundy paused. “Tubbo…” he paused, realizing that the question he was about to ask was probably a touchy subject. “How do you know so much about the Blood God?” For a moment, Tubbo was silent. Then he sighed resignedly. “I guess I do owe you an explanation, don’t I? Alright, let me tell you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finals. Just...finals


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You've gotta do whatever it takes to protect the ones you love."

Tubbo had just come home for the night. He had been out caving with one of the neighbors while his father was out at work. The day had been mostly normal, but for some reason, his dad had been quick to shoo him away from the house that morning. He set down his satchel on the table. His dad wasn’t home yet, which was a bit unusual, but not much of a surprise. Sometimes, his father would work late into the night and come home in the early hours of the morning, long after Tubbo had fallen asleep. His dad used to have to have a group of friends he used to work. Back then, Tubbo had thought they’d all moved away and gotten new jobs. Now he knew they’d been killed.

He had made himself dinner that night, and read one of his father’s dusty research books for a little bit. Sometime during the evening, a storm had picked up. Wind shook the trees and rain pounded against the windows. Tubbo couldn’t tell, but it felt like something was off. Everything about that night screamed to him that something was wrong. He’d wandered around the house for a while before he stopped in front of the door to his dad’s study. He was forbidden from going in there, a rule he had never broken until that night.  
He pushed open the door hesitantly. Books and papers were thrown around the room and the chair lay broken in the center of the room. Even back then, Tubbo had known they were signs of a struggle. His chest tightened, and he ran into the room. “Dad?!” Panic began to creep into his voice. “Dad!” There was no response. He moved over to the desk, and rifled through the papers, looking for any clue as to where his dad might have been taken. He came up empty though, and quickly set the papers aside. Suddenly, he spotted a small latch on the corner of the desk, and clicked it into place.

The wooden board that made up the top of the desk came loose. Tubbo grabbed the edges of the board, and with a grunt shoved it off. It hit the ground with a dull thud, and the boy jumped in fright. After a moment, his heart slowed. “Just the desk,” he reminded himself. The sound of his voice was somewhat comforting, but he was still on edge. Underneath the board, there was a shallow compartment. It held only an old leather journal and a dark green jacket. Tubbo slipped on the jacket. It was far too big for him, but the weight of it made him feel slightly better. It was his dad’s jacket; he and his work buddies all had the same one. They didn’t wear it anymore.

He pulled out the journal, and quickly flipped to the last entry. It had been hastily filled out, like it had been written in a panic. Tubbo recognized his dad’s elegant handwriting immediately. The journal must have been his. “Sorry for snooping, Dad,” he muttered. He scanned the last section of text.

“I’ve found what I believe to be his hideout. I do not like the prospect of going there, but I must. I swore to myself that I would do this. Tubbo, if I do not come back from this journey, do not come after me. I could not bear the thought of something happening to you because of me. But, if you insist, you will find that hidden behind the bookshelf in my room is a diamond sword. Take good care of it. It was your mother’s.”

Tears welled up in Tubbo’s eyes. He hadn’t really gotten to know his mom, but from what his dad had told him, she’d been a fearsome warrior. He was honored his dad was willing to entrust him with her sword. Quickly, he wiped away the tears and kept reading. “And please, for the love of God, take some strength and regen potions.” Tubbo chuckled, but quickly sombered as he read the rest of the passage. “But Tubbo, please, I am begging you. Do not come after me. I can’t lose you too.” Tubbo sniffled, but then he set his jaw. He was determined to find and save his dad, even if he had no idea where the man might be.

He set the journal down on the desk, but as he did so, a paper tumbled out. Tubbo picked it up and saw that it was a hastily sketched map of the village. A spot was marked in the foothills of the mountains, labeled simply, “his lair.” Tubbo recognized the spot. His heart began to pound, and his mouth dried out. It was the Devil’s Mine. The same year Tubbo had been born, dozens of the miners had been slaughtered there. His own mother had been killed there when he was five. And now from the looks of it, whatever was in the mine had his dad.

Tubbo ran out to the main room and emptied his satchel of the material’s he had gathered earlier that day. He set the journal in the bag gently. He moved to the chest of potions they kept in the kitchen. He grabbed the bright red healing potions and the darker strength potion, tossing them into the satchel as well. Part of him wondered why his dad kept so many potions, but he was grateful for it either way. He moved onto his dad’s room, and managed to pry the bookshelf a few inches away from the wall. He could just reach a long, flat object. It must have been the sword. He closed his fingers around what he assumed to be the hilt and pulled it out. He spent a few minutes puzzling over how to strap the sheath to his waist, but eventually, he figured it out. Having gathered everything he thought he’d need, he grabbed a torch, and set off into the night.

The wind put out his torch almost immediately. It had stopped raining by now, but the air was still wet enough to prevent his flint and steel from catching. That was okay. He knew the village like the back of his hand. He made his way through the dark town square, the wind causing his jacket to flap wildly around him. The houses were all eerily quiet, but maybe it was just his imagination. He had never really been out at night without his dad, and even then he had never gone into town. Maybe this was normal.

But as he made his way to the other end of the square, he noticed why it seemed so strange. There were no lanterns. He glanced toward the inn, but that building too, was dark. His heart began to pound faster. The inn’s lanterns were always lit, even in the middle of the afternoon. There was no way anyone would ever put them out. Out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of movement, and suddenly he was running.

He was running as fast as he possibly could. Finally, he reached the mountains and slowed down in an attempt to catch his breath. The rocks mostly shielded him from the wind, and he attempted to light his torch. This time, it caught. He plunged deeper into the foothills, and after a moment found the entrance to the Devil’s Mine. He held out his torch, but it did little to stave off the darkness. He hesitated for a moment, but then he stepped into the mine as the shadow’s swallowed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for all the support on the story. It's been marvelous, and I cannot express how grateful I am to you guys. Thank you so, so much.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Information is only useful when it can be understood."  
> -Muriel Cooper

About a hundred yards into the mineshaft, Tubbo’s torch spluttered out. “There shouldn’t be any wind in here,” he muttered to himself. He tried to get his flint and steel to catch, but couldn’t get a spark. Suddenly, something grabbed him from behind. He tried to scream, to call out for help, something, but a hand covered his mouth. He scrambled for his mother’s sword, but his captor had pinned his arms to his side. “Shh,” his captor hissed in his ear. “Don’t let him catch us.”

Tubbo bit down on his captor’s hand, and with a hiss of pain, his captor pulled back, freeing him. Tubbo fumbled for the sword, and managed to unsheath it without killing himself. He caught a faint glimpse of his captor in the faint glow of the enchanted blade. The stranger had on a plain white dress shirt, and a dark red cloak. He had light brown hair and a small, thick beard. “Who are you?” Tubbo demanded, hands shaking. “Tubbo?” the stranger said. Tubbo recognized the voice instantly. “Dad?”

He dropped the sword and threw his arms around the man. His dad returned the hug. “That sword suits you. I can’t believe I didn’t give it to you earlier.” Tears welled up in Tubbo’s eyes. “Dad, what’s going on? What happened to everyone in town? Why are you in the Devil’s Mine?” His dad only hugged him tighter. “Look, Tubbo, I know that this is scary. But I’m going to save everyone. I promise.” His dad pulled away. “Do you have any potions?” Tubbo nodded and dug out both a strength and regen one. His dad grabbed the regen potion and downed it quickly. “Thank you,” Tubbo’s dad said. Then after a moment, “You wouldn’t happen to have my journal would you?” Tubbo dug it out and offered it to his dad.

“Keep it,” his dad said. “You probably need it more at this point than I do.” Tubbo shoved it back into his bag with a grin. Then he quickly sobered. “Dad, who the hell are we fighting? You said not to let him catch us. Who’s ‘him?’” His dad sighed.

“Tubbo do you know what a Dreamon is?” Tubbo’s brow furrowed. “Aren’t those the creatures you and mom used to fight before I was born?” His dad nodded. “The one who lives in this mine killed you mother.”

There was silence. “Oh,” Tubbo said after a moment. “So why did it take the villagers?” “I think he needs them for some kind of sacrifice. I didn’t hear much of his plan before he caught me.” His dad grimaced. “I think he’s trying to open a portal into the dreamon world.” “We have to stop him then,” Tubbo said. His dad nodded. “The problem is,” he said, clearly thinking aloud. “I don’t know his proper name, just his title, so it’s going to be very hard to kill him. I can exorcise him, but I fear it won’t be permanent.” “Well, if he comes back, we’ll just defeat him again,” Tubbo said determinedly. Tubbo’s dad smiled and the boy picked up the sword he had dropped. “Lead the way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's short I know, but who am I to argue with natural stopping points?


	16. Chapter 15

As the pair moved deeper into the mines, they began to hear the sound of someone chanting. The air around them pulsed with a malevolent power. Eventually, the tunnel widened, and they could make out the soft glow of light. Tubbo’s dad held up his hand, and the two stopped. Tubbo hefted his sword and crept forward. The chanting grew louder, and the boy’s heart skipped a beat as he was able to make out some of the words. “Portal,” “destruction,” and “blood sacrifice” were the only ones he could make out. His heart leapt into his throat. Now he knew why the villagers had been taken.

They reached the cave opening, and for a moment, Tubbo stopped breathing. The cave was illuminated by a ring of dark red fire, and a dark figure stood in the middle, arms raised, chanting. Firelight glinted off dark pools of liquid, and with a start, Tubbo realized it was blood. He nearly threw up.

He glanced at his father and mouthed, “What do we do?” “We need to put out the fire,” his father whispered. “I’ll distract him.” Tubbo nodded. “What do you need me to do?” “I think I saw a couple buckets of water in the back corner,” his dad said, nodding towards the other end of the cave. “What about the people?” Tubbo asked, unable to keep the slight tremor out of his voice. “There’s nothing we can do for them now,” his dad said with a sad sigh. “Now hand me a strength potion.” Tubbo did as he was told, and the two split up.  
Tubbo crept into the cave, silently making his way to the back. He didn’t see anything he could use to extinguish the flames, though. He glanced back towards his dad for guidance, but the man had already stepped into the light. The flames parted before him, and the chanting stopped.

“Jardon,” the dark figure said. “You’re finally here. If you wanted to save the villagers, I’m afraid you’re a bit too late for that.” Tubbo saw his dad’s jaw tighten. “I’m going to stop you.” The dreamon just laughed. “Oh really? You and your new sidekick?” Tubbo froze. His dad’s expression didn’t change, but Tubbo caught the flash of panic that flickered across his eyes.

“Don't you remember how you got all your other friends killed?” the dark figure said. Tubbo’s dad’s jaw clenched. “And this time you brought your what? Your son?” The figure chuckled. “And I thought you couldn’t get any more reckless.” Despite the fact that they had been caught, Tubbo’s dad smirked. “I don’t know what you’re talking about Blood God. I’ve come alone. Maybe you’ve lost your edge.”

Tubbo’s gaze flicked across the cave walls, desperately searching for anything to put out the flames with. “Oh really?” the figure said; Tubbo could practically hear it smirking. Suddenly, flames surrounded Tubbo. The boy stumbled back, and desperately scrabbled for his sword. He managed to draw it, and held it up awkwardly. “S-stay back!”  
The dreamon just laughed. “You brought a child to fight me, Jardon? Did you even teach him how to use that sword?” “Dad didn’t bring me,” Tubbo said defiantly. His dad’s jaw clenched. “Tubbo, be quiet.” “Oh, you came by yourself did you, Tubbo?” the dreamon asked mockingly. The boy didn’t respond. “Do you fancy yourself some kind of noble hero come to save his father?” Tubbo’s grip tightened on his sword, and the dreamon only laughed. “Let me show you what happens when children try to play hero.” The Blood God raised his arm, and the flames roared.

Tubbo was shaken out of his thoughts by the sound of Fundy’s voice. “The Blood God killed your dad, didn’t he?” Tubbo nodded. He glanced down and realized he had opened the journal to the last entry his dad had written. He closed it quickly. No point lingering on that night. “He killed the whole village too,” the teen said, a hard edge to his voice. “I can’t lose anyone else I care about.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha tragic backstories go brrrr


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Potatoes

Techno threaded the needle, and pushed it through the fabric of his cloak. Wilbur had insisted on cleaning it, but he knew better than to touch Techno’s cloak. The explosion and subsequent withers must have done more damage than he’d thought. The red cloth was torn in a couple dozen places. The bottom edge of the cloak was in the worst shape, and distantly, Techno wondered if he would just have to cut off the strip of fabric. It seemed after every battle, his cloak got shorter and shorter. It was really annoying.

Out the corner of his eye, he caught the glint of a golden-yellow object. He glanced in the direction, and saw a baked potato laying in the grass a few feet away. “Why the-” Then he spotted another baked potato a few feet behind the first one. It reminded him of the bait trails he had often seen professional hunters use countless times. It was so clearly a trap. He snorted. No way he was going to fall for that.

Tossing his cloak to the side, he lunged for the potato, His fingers closed around it, and he stuffed it into his mouth. It was warm and smeared with butter, just the way he liked it. “This is totally a trap,” he muttered, before lunging for the next potato. He shoved that one into his mouth as well, and began to gather up the rest of the potatoes in the trail. Finally he reached a spot near L’manburg’s walls. Resting against the wall was a sturdy two by four stone box. Inside lay a pile of beautiful, golden baked potatoes. “Jackpot!” he said, before stepping in.

He heard a door slam shut behind him, and turned to see an iron door locking him into the box. “Knew it was a trap,” he muttered, before nibbling on another potato. “Oh my god!” he heard someone exclaim incredulously. It sounded like Tubbo. “I didn’t think that would actually work!” another voice said. This one sounded like Fundy. The two mysterious people stepped into view of the door. It was Tubbo and Fundy.

Tubbo had on a dark green jacket with golden accents and he was holding a diamond sword awkwardly. Clearly he didn’t really know how to use it. Fundy had shed his revolutionary get up in favor of a lighter black jacket and his white t-shirt. “Hey, Tubbo,” Techno greeted casually. “Whatcha doing?” “Hello, Blood God,” the teen said, his voice even. Techno raised an eyebrow at the title. “Ah, you don’t need to be formal with me, Tubbo. You can just call me Techno.”

“I’d rather just call you by what you are, dreamon.” Tubbo practically spat out the last word. Techno chuckled nervously. Suddenly, the trap was making him a lot more nervous. He had never seen Tubbo angry at someone before, much less hateful. “What’s goin on, Tubbo?” “Why don’t you tell us, Blood God?” Fundy said. He didn’t have quite the same venom in his voice as Tubbo, but he was clearly furious too.

“Why do you keep calling me The Blood God? That’s just a stupid nickname I have. I’m not actually some kind of God,” Techno said. “No, you’re not,” Tubbo said. “Just tell us the truth, Dreamon. Why are you possessing Technoblade?” The warrior blinked. “Tubbo, I’m not possessed. What are you talking about?” There was silence.

Tubbo scanned Techno’s gaze, but after a moment, seemed to find nothing amiss. Finally, he turned to Fundy. “How long has he been in there?” “About a minute,” Fundy replied. Then he opened a beat up leather journal. “Didn’t you say in here that it only takes like five seconds for the trap to work.” “Hah!” Techno said before he could stop himself. “Loser! Your trap didn’t even work.” Tubbo and Fundy sighed at the same time. “Yeah, that’s definitely Technoblade,” Tubbo said. He reached over to the side of the box, flicked a lever, and the iron door swung open.

Techno stepped out onto the grass, shoving the potatoes into his inventory for later. “So, Tubbo, you mind telling me what that was all about?” Tubbo nodded sheepishly, blush beginning to creep up his cheeks. “I-” he chuckled nervously. “I thought you were a dreamon.” There was silence. “What the hell is a dreamon?” Techno said. Fundy flipped to a page near the beginning of the journal he was holding and showed it to Technoblade. The page was filled with sketches of vaguely humanoid figures, some with wings, some with horns, some with both. “So they’re demons?” Techno asked unimpressed. “You two know those don’t exist, right?” Tubbo gritted his teeth. “Yes, they do.”

The guarded look in the teen’s eyes told Techno not to press. Besides, Tubbo’s voice was filled with such conviction Techno would have believed him anyways. “Wait a minute,” Fundy said. “If Techno’s not a dreamon...who is?” Tubbo froze, then he quickly snatched the journal from Fundy’s hands and flipped to a blank page. He fished out a pen and quickly began scribbling notes.

“We know it’s the Blood God, so that gives us a bit of a clue. He usually goes after experienced warriors, so it probably can’t be anyone in L’manburg. Tommy’s pretty good at combat, but he’s lost enough fights to other people that he probably wouldn’t be on the Blood God’s radar. We should probably test him anyways just to be safe though. It’s gotta be someone on the Dream Team then.”

Techno recalled the fight he’d had with Dream yesterday. “When I was fighting him the other day, Dream said something like ‘you’re almost worthy of my title.’ Is this dreamon thing you guys are fighting called the Blood God?” Tubbo nodded, and scrawled another note in his journal. Slowly Fundy’s eyes widened. “No, no, no, no, no, no.”

“Fundy, what is it?” Tubbo asked, concerned. “There’s no way. He can’t be. He can’t be.” The fox began to hyperventilate. “You okay there, Fundy?” Techno asked, unsure what to do. Fundy didn’t say anything. Wordlessly, Tubbo pulled him into a hug. “It’s okay, Fundy. It’s okay. I don’t want anyone to be possessed either.” “No, no, you don’t understand. He can’t-” Suddenly, Fundy broke off, and Techno could practically see the gears turning in his brain. “It would make sense though. He’s been acting so strange lately. It’s like he doesn’t even recognize me half the time.” The fox’s voice had softened, fear clearly setting in. He pulled back from Tubbo’s hug. “We need to call an emergency meeting. Dream is possessed by a dreamon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, that happened. Also you guys get a nice long chapter.
> 
> Also, lemme know if I need to add a warning of some kind for Fundy's little freakout at the end.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'd learned that some things are best kept secret."
> 
> -Nicholas Sparks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: This chapter is 1738 words.

By time they were able to actually organize the meeting, evening had fallen. Techno had gotten distracted setting up a potato farm Wilbur had insisted their housing situation get fixed first, since Dream had blown up the camarvan, which, okay that was fair. Tommy had simply refused to attend the meeting, saying he had more important things to do. (He had been antagonizing Punz all day.) Eventually, Wilbur had managed to convince him to come to the meeting, telling him it was Tubbo who had called the meeting.   
They stood in a loose ring around an unbalanced wooden table, inside the little house Wilbur had constructed. Tubbo’s journal was spread out on the table, as well as a few miscellaneous sketches of the Blood God he had taken from his ender chest. Everyone had been tested, and Tubbo had confidently declared them not-possessed. Fundy wasn’t sure whether or not he was relieved by that.

There was no way Dream could have been possessed. Fundy would have seen it. Sometimes, it felt like Dream was the only person he truly knew, especially now, after Eret’s betrayal. There was no way he would have missed the warning signs. There was no way he would have failed his boyfriend that spectacularly.

But at the same time, it made too much sense to not be true. The way Dream seemed to know too much and not enough at the same time. It explained why he hadn’t recognized Fundy at first. It explained the coldness after he had found out that Fundy had still been in the camarvan. It explained the black veins under his eyes. The Dream he had known for the past few days wasn’t his Dream. It was possible that the Dream he had fallen in love with wasn’t even the real Dream.

He forced that train of thought down. He had already screwed-up enough for one week. He didn’t want to think about how it was possible that he could have fallen in love with a dreamon. The sound of Tubbo’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts. “Hey, Fundy. You still with us?” Fundy nodded. Wilbur looked over at him. “Are you okay, Fundy? You’ve been out of it all afternoon.” “I’m fine, Wil,” Fundy said cooly. “What do you need, Tubbo?” “I was just wondering how Dream was acting different. Like in what ways? Just so I know how much of a hold the Blood God has on him,” the teen said.

“Oh...um,” Fundy’s tail flicked behind him nervously. He really didn’t want to answer the question. It would just inevitably lead to everyone questioning why he knew Dream so well. And that wasn’t a question he was prepared to answer yet. “He...um, it’s like he doesn’t recognize the people he’s supposed to know, but at the same time, he’s way too familiar with the way Technoblade fights to not have met him before.” “Hmmph,” Techno grunted. “You guys fought a dreamon in the future. Possessed Dream too, actually. Might be the same one.” “That would explain the time travel,” Tubbo said, making a note in his journal. “He most likely came back so we would have a harder time defeating him. Probably didn’t expect you to be here, though. Might be the only person who could actually take him in a fight.” The teen glanced up. “You’re gonna be our front line if we get into a fight.” “Sounds good,” Techno said.

“How else has Dream been acting weird?” Wilbur asked, turning to Fundy. “He seems a lot more bloodthirsty, and a lot more...” he hesitated, not wanting to reveal just how close he and Dream were. “He’s been a lot more distant too. Colder.” Fundy waited, barely breathing, but after a moment, no one seemed to realize the implications of his answer. He sighed softly in relief. “He’s also been a lot more combative,” Tubbo mused. “I mean, even more than usual for Dream. I think at this point, he’s fully possessed.”   
“No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no,” Fundy repeated silently. He couldn’t have failed Dream like that. He couldn’t have. Wilbur pulled him closer, and rubbed soothing circles into the foxes back. “It’s going to be okay, Fundy. It’s going to be okay. I promise.” Eventually, Fundy managed to calm down. He pulled away from Wilbur and leaned against the table heavily. Wilbur was looking at him strangely, but decided not to ask about the fox’s freakout. Tommy, however, had no such politeness.

“What the hell was that about Fundy? Why does it matter if Dream is possessed? It just means our enemy is more powerful. Why would you freak out like that?” “It’s nothing,” Fundy said hurriedly. The panic must have shown in his eyes though, because Wilbur’s expression changed from one of confusion to one of suspicion. “Fundy, how do you know Dream so well? Why do you care about him so much?”

Fundy didn’t want to answer the question. He really didn’t. But if they were going into a fight with Dream, they deserved to know the truth. Frankly, he had kept it a secret far too long as it was already. “Because...Because we’re together.” He forced the words out, and closed his eyes shut tightly. He didn’t want to see the judgement in his family’s faces. For a moment, there was silence. Slowly, Fundy cracked one eye open, and scanned the room.

Technoblade’s expression hadn’t changed. Fundy wouldn’t be surprised if he already knew. He was from the future after all. Tubbo’s expression was shocked, but, slowly, it turned into a smile. Tommy’s mouth was slightly agape, obvious disbelief in his eyes. Fundy refused to look at Wilbur. The silence stretched on.

Finally, Tubbo spoke up. “Surely not,” he said, a laugh creeping into his voice. “Surely not! Of all the times! You just had to pick when we were fighting a war with him!” Fundy had to laugh too. “In my defense, we got together a couple days before the war actually started.” “Still!” Tubbo exclaimed. “You have the worst timing, Fundy!”

“Dream!” Tommy shouted, starting to get over his shock. “Dream? You could do so much better, Fundy. There are so many other gorgeous men who aren’t Dream.” Fundy chuckled. “What can I say? I’m a sucker for green eyes.” “Dream has green eyes?” Tommy asked. “Wait, have you seen him without his mask on?!” Fundy nodded. “What does he look like? I bet he’s ugly,” the teen asked excitedly. Fundy decided not to answer that question. He was okay with keeping some things between him and Dream. “Congratulations,” Techno deadpanned with a nod. “You already knew, didn’t you?” Fundy asked. Techno just smiled.

“You...and Dream...are together?” Wilbur asked softly. Everyone froze. Slowly, Fundy forced himself to look his father in the eye. “Yes,” he said, hoping his voice didn’t betray his nervousness. Wilbur didn’t say anything, but slowly, his expression changed from one of shock and confusion to utter betrayal. Fundy tried to ignore the way that look stabbed at his heart. “You chose Dream...” Quickly, Wilbur’s face hardened, becoming the expressionless mask he often wore when negotiating with the Dream Team. Fundy had never imagined it would be directed at him. Finally, Wilbur spoke up.

“You’re worse than Eret.”

Something inside Fundy broke. Well, broke was quite the right word. More like shattered. He felt it in the pit of his stomach, fragments of broken glass coming loose all through his body. He supposed it felt like being shot. But at least if you were shot, you could fix it. Fundy wasn’t sure he could fix this. It was far more deadly than any crossbow shot anyways.

At first he didn’t even feel it. Everything was just numb, blocked out by a single thought. “He hates me.” Wilbur hated him. He had always known it was a possibility. of course. That was why he hadn’t told anyone. But to be so inescapably confronted with the truth… He didn’t know how to feel.

Then he felt the broken glass. It wasn’t as painful or jagged as he had expected. Instead, it just sat there, heavy and sharp and delicate. If he moved even an inch, it would cut him up from the inside until there was nothing left of him. A part of him wondered if that would be better than the knowledge that his father hated him.

Wilbur was his father. Wasn’t he supposed to support him no matter what?

He felt tears welling up in his eyes, but he shoved them down. He couldn’t cry. At least not right now. Not in front of everyone else. It felt almost like his head was under water. When had he stopped breathing? He forced himself to take in a breath. “I’m going for a walk,” he croaked out. “Where to?” Wilbur asked. Not out of concern, or curiosity. Out of suspicion. Of his own son. “Just going for a walk,” Fundy said listlessly.

Wilbur moved to block the door, but Technoblade grabbed his arm. “Let him go. You need to let him process. That wasn’t okay, Wil.” Wilbur didn’t fight back, clearly deciding it wasn’t worth it. Fundy stormed out the door and slammed it behind him.

He wandered L’manburg in a daze. He didn’t know how long for, but when he finally came out of it, someone had put out the lights in the house. They must have gone to bed. Good, he didn’t want to deal with anyone else right now. He glanced around, and realized he was standing in front of the tunnel that led to the Final Control Room.  
“Worse than Eret.” The words echoed through his mind, blocking out any of the panic he might have felt at seeing the tunnel. Wilbur hated him. His own father hated him. So what if he was dating Dream? It was hardly like L’manburg was the paragon of peace and goodness it claimed to be. They had started the war for independence after all. Tears welled up again. “Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry.” He wasn’t sure if he was saying it aloud. He didn’t care. The broken glass feeling was sharper than ever.

He was so lost in his own thoughts, he didn’t hear the footsteps behind him. Suddenly, something large and heavy slammed into the back of his head, and he slumped to the ground, unconscious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha, definitely not projecting my feelings from my failed coming out onto Fundy. No! What are you talking about?
> 
> If you need any warnings for this chapter let me know.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Never judge a person for their mistakes, judge a person on how they fix them."

Techno found Wilbur sitting underneath a tree. The general was wringing the edge of his jacket between his hands, and his hair was messy and unkempt. He had slight bags under his eyes, and it looked as if he hadn’t slept at all last night. Had he stayed up waiting for Fundy to come back?

The pig sat down next to Wilbur, and pulled off his helmet. His fingers traced a crack in the netherite. He’d have to repair it soon. Wilbur still hadn’t noticed him. Gently, Techno cleared his throat. Wil jumped about a foot, and his head snapped around to face Techno.

“Oh, Techno!” Wilbur fumbled to put his hat back on and tried to look at least a little presentable. “What do you need?” “We need to talk, Wil.” Wilbur’s jaw tightened. “Look, if this is about Fundy, I don’t want to talk about anything to do with that traitor.” “Yeah, well, that ‘traitor’ happens to be your son. So like it or not, we’re having this discussion.” For a moment there was silence. Then Wilbur sighed in defeat, and gestured for Techno to start.

“What you did last night wasn’t okay, Wil. You’re allowed to disagree with him; I see why you disagree with him. But that was a low blow.” “It’s true though. He chose Dream. Dream! And not for something like power or anything like that. He genuinely likes Dream.” Wilbur sighed. “I built L’manburg to protect him from Dream! Can he not see that? I have every right to tell him the truth. He betrayed me.”

Techno glared at him, unimpressed. “Besides, he’s just a kid,” Wilbur said, scrambling to defend himself. “He’s a kid and he made a stupid descision. I’m his father. It’s my job to make sure he doesn’t get hurt.” “No,” Techno said. Wilbur raised his eyebrow. “What are you talking about? Of course it is.” Techno sighed tiredly. “It is your job to protect him. But more importantly, it’s your job to support him. And he’s not a kid anymore, Wil.” “Yes he is. He’s only just a teenager.” “He’s fought a war for you, Wil.”

“He’s seen pain and sorrow and carnage. He’s died for you multiple times. He’s seen his father and his family die, and he’s been betrayed by someone he really cared about, something he might never recover from. You don’t come out the other side of that without having grown up. Like it or not, Wil, he isn’t a kid anymore.”

“But-but-” Wilbur tried to find anything to protest, but he knew Techno was right. Fundy wasn’t a kid anymore. None of them were. He leaned heavily into Techno’s side, and after a moment of surprise, the pig-themed warrior put an arm around Wilbur’s shoulders. “God, what have I done? They were all kids. They had their whole lives ahead of them. And I took that away from them.” “You did, Wil,” Techno said. “But you have to remember. They knew what they were getting into. They all chose to fight beside you.” “They’ve all died for me. I’m a horrible general. A horrible brother, and a horrible father.”

Techno didn’t say anything. “I need to apologize to Fundy. I went too far,” Wilbur said. “Yes, you did.” Techno helped Wilbur to his feet. “Where does Fundy usually hang out when he’s mad at you?” “He usually crashes at Eret’s castle. But after everything that happened, he probably wouldn’t go there.” “He might have. He was the first to forgive Eret, back when I’m from.. And after what you said to him, he probably just wants to go somewhere familiar. It’s worth a shot.” Wilbur looked like he wanted to protest, but he knew Techno was probably right.

They made their way down the prime path until they could see the castle in the distance. Wilbur was silent, not wanting to say a word for fear that he wouldn’t have the courage to step foot in the traitor’s castle. Techno put his hand on Wilbur’s shoulder comfortingly. “We won’t be there for long. I promise” Wilbur nodded. They continued down the path until they were in front of the community house.

Suddenly, the doors to the house slammed open, and Sapnap came barreling out. Techno and Wilbur had never seen the arsonist so terrified. Techno caught him by the arm, and turned him to face the two L’manburgians. Sapnap raised his fists, ready for a fight, but relaxed once he saw who it was. “Wilbur, thank god. Just the person I was looking for. I have information about Dream.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shorter chapter I know, but a very important character moment for Wil.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I kinda put Fundy through the ringer this chapter ngl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Panic attack/PTSD
> 
> Skip the section that starts with "He scrambled back," and ends with "At the sound of pistons"

Fundy woke with a gasp. His head was pounding, and it felt like there was cotton in his mouth. He swallowed dryly and forced himself to open his eyes. He shut them immediately at the bright, piercing light that swallowed the room. Where was he anyways? He spread his hands out at his side, and felt the rough woolen texture of blankets. He was on a bed. Had Wil carried him to bed last night?

Wil.

The name sent a jolt of panic down his spine as he remembered his father’s scathing judgement. “Worse than Eret.” There was no way Wil had carried him to bed after that. Had he respawned then? No, that didn’t make any sense. He had been on his last life. He wouldn’t have respawned. And anyways, that didn’t explain his throbbing head. Respawning was painless. He forced his eyes open again.

After a moment, his eyes adjusted, and he realized the blinding light was just a single torch. He must have had a...what was it called? A concussion. He tried to sit up, but immediately regretted it as his vision swam, and he nearly threw up. He definitely had a concussion. His brow furrowed as he tried to remember how he had ended up with a concussion. He had been sitting in front of the tunnel that led to the Final Control Room...something had hit him in the back of the head. Well, that would explain the throbbing. Slowly he reached back and gently prodded at the base of his skull. There was dried blood matted in his fur.

He scanned the room he was in. It held just the bed he was in, and a torch on the far wall. He couldn’t see a visible exit from the room. Had he been captured? It would make sense, given that someone had hit him in the back of the head. The smooth blackstone walls seemed eerily familiar. A small stand rose to about his waist’s height, a button on top. It took him a moment to realize why it seemed so familiar without the chests lining the walls. He was in the Final Control Room.

He scrambled back against the wall. There was no way. No way. He couldn’t be here again. He couldn’t be back here. He couldn’t. He closed his eyes as his breathing turned short and panicky. He couldn’t be back here. No, no, no, no, no, no. He tried to force down the flashes of memory that swept across his vision, but he couldn’t.

He remembered the soft button click, so quiet at the time, so innocent. Now it echoed through his skull, playing on repeat, no way to shut it off. He heard the pistons firing, the hidden doors sliding open. He heard the screaming, the anguished cries from Tommy and Tubbo, Wilbur desperately yelling for them to run. He heard Eret’s words echoing through the silence that fell afterwards. “It was never meant to be.” He heard Dream laughing with joy at the chaos he had caused, sure that his enemies would never recover from the blow. It was the only time Fundy had truly been scared of the warrior in green.

He saw the sudden light from when the fire aspect on Dream’s sword had lit Tommy’s jacket aflame. It had been a small mercy the boy had died before the fire spread to the other parts of his uniform. He saw himself running, running desperately, fleeing to the corner, turning around just to see George marching towards him, sword in hand. He watched as Tubbo leapt for the exit, only for that door to slide closed. He’d turned away, not wanting to watch Sapnap murder the boy. Fundy had died as the boy’s screams still echoed through the chamber.

He felt George’s blade cutting into his side, the blood pooling on his revolutinary’s uniform. He felt the sudden heat as the fire aspect on his enemies sword as the flames erupted around him. He felt the same pain and terror he had that day. He felt the sting of betrayal, and the sting of the tears that had prickled in his eyes afterwards. None of them had slept that night. He had barely slept in the weeks after that.

Fundy pulled his knees up to his chest and tried to block the memories. He tried so hard, but it was pointless.

At the sound of pistons firing, his head snapped up. It was far too loud to just be the damn memories. Someone had stepped into the room. They were wearing full netherite, an enchanted sword at their side. The person had their mask off; they didn’t really need it anymore, Fundy supposed. He relaxed at the sight of the light blonde hair and green eyes. He knew this person. This person was safe. Slowly, Fundy managed to shove the memories down and focus on the person standing in front of him.

Dream was leaning against the wall, arms crossed and smirking. He looked so normal. Fundy relaxed a slight bit, but there was no way he was going to let his guard down. Not in here. “Dream,” he murmured, not bothering to hide the relief in his voice. Except this wasn’t Dream, was it? It was the dreamon. He didn’t know this person. They weren’t safe.  
“Ah, c’mon Fundy,” the dreamon said. “I know you know better than that.” He sounded so much like Dream, but he wasn’t. Not really. Fundy pulled his knees back up, and refused to meet the Blood God’s eyes. “Oh, don’t be like that. You should be glad. I can’t kill you without losing control of this vessel. You’re completely safe here.” Fundy shook his head mutely. No. No one was safe here. The whole point of this room was to kill them. He wasn’t safe here.

“Oh, is it the room?” the dreamon said with a knowing smirk. “I couldn’t have you trying to escape. Figured you’d be too busy trying not to remember what happened here that you wouldn’t bother trying to run. Doubt you’re little friends will come to save you if you’re here anyways.” The dreamon chuckled. “Just because I can’t kill you doesn’t mean I can’t make your life a living hell.”

Finally, Fundy managed to say something. “Why?” The dreamon glanced at him. He still refused to meet those green eyes. “Why what?” Dream said. No. It wasn’t Dream. He had to remember that. He didn’t know what he was asking the dreamon himself. Why had he been captured? Why was the Blood God going after his friends? Why take Dream?  
“Do you want to know why I’m doing this, Fundy?” the dreamon asked, like he was humoring a child. “Do you want to know why I’m killing everyone?” Fundy forced himself to nod. He didn’t actually want to know. But he’d need the information when Wilbur came to rescue him. God, he just wanted Wilbur to come get him.

The dreamon snapped him out of his thought. “I want to bring the rest of my kind here. I need a blood sacrifice to do that. That’s why I’m going after everyone. That’s why I blew up the camarvan too. I knew you and little Tubbo were in there.” Fundy flinched. “The rest of your kind?” the fox asked, desperately wanting to change the subject. The dreamon rolled his eyes. “Oh, Fundy. Did you really think I was the only one of my kind? I want to bring the rest of the dreamons here.” Fundy swallowed. “Oh.”

“I’ll bring them here, and we’ll burn everything to the ground. Nothing will remain of these lands. Maybe I’ll even spare you for Dream.” The dreamon’s voice turned mocking. “Wouldn’t that be nice? You two could be together in peace. No more wars, no more scathing judgements from Wilbur. You would be free. Nothing to wor-” “Stop! Stop it!” Fundy cut him off. “You’re just trying to get in my head! Just shut up, okay?! Just shut up and leave me alone!” “If you say so,” the Blood God said. He clicked a button in his hand, and the piston door slid open. The dreamon stepped through, and the door slid shut behind him. Fundy buried his head in his knees and tried not to cry.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We're all puppets. I'm just a puppet who can see the strings."  
> -Alan Moore

Eret knelt down in the grass, stabbing at the dirt. He managed to pull up the poppy and stuffed it in the pouch at his side. He was trying to get more dyes for his castle. He was thinking of adding more of the rainbow windows the fortress was known for onto the second story. He was also planning to tackle the interior, and was hoping to start with the guest bedrooms. He needed the dye for the blankets.

Behind him, he heard the sounds of people rousing and getting ready for the day. He glanced back nervously. His flower hunt had brought him dangerously close to L’manburg’s borders. As much as he wanted to see everyone else again, he knew they wouldn’t take kindly to his presence. He stuffed another poppy into his pouch and stood up.

He gave himself a moment to scan over the valley where L’manburg sat. They had cleaned up the crater left by the camarvan explosion, and it looked as if they had built themselves a little house. Tommy was chasing Tubbo around the lake, the two teenagers laughing as if they didn’t have a care in the world. Wilbur and Techno sat underneath a tree, talking. A pang shot through Eret. He missed it, that safe world Wilbur had built within the walls. But he had made his decision, and he was going to stick by it. No matter how much he regretted it.

Just as he turned away, a flicker of movement caught his eye. He glanced toward it, and saw Dream coming out of the tunnel that led to the Final Control Room. “Why is he in there?” Eret muttered to himself. He watched as Dream scaled the wall silently, and landed on the other side. The warrior made his way in the direction of Eret’s castle, and the king cursed silently. Dream was probably looking for him. Which meant he needed to get to the castle.

Eret just barely managed to beat Dream to the castle. He’d just sat down on his throne when the doors to the hall were thrown open. Dream marched in, a triumphant smile on his face. “Dream,” Eret greeted coolly. Despite the alliance he had made with the warrior, he hated these meetings with Dream. He was always impossible to read, and Eret could never tell what he was really after.

“Eret,” Dream said, returning the greeting. “I see your castle is coming along.” “Yes. I actually had plans to work on it today,” Eret said, signaling Dream to just get the meeting over with. “Well unfortunately, I doubt you’ll be able to get to those plans today,” Dream said, smile never dipping. “What? Are you planning to blow up L’manburg again?” Eret said, not bothering to hide the disapproval in his voice. “They’ve won independence, Dream. They’ve won it on terms that you agreed to. You agreed to let Technoblade duel in Tommy’s place. That was a dirty trick.”

“How many lives do you have, Eret?” Dream said, changing the subject. Eret’s hand strayed to the sword he kept at his side. “Why do you want to know?” It seemed like a trap. He didn’t trust the smile on Dream’s face, or way the warrior’s hands were empty. He knew Dream could draw a weapon faster than he could blink. “I just want to know the risk all my men are at, should we go into battle again.” “I’m one of your men?” Eret asked cautiously. “Of course you are! You led the L’manburg idiots into the Final Control Room for us. How could you not be one of my men?” Yeah, this was definitely a trap. Dream knew better than to bring up the Final Control Room.

“So, how many lives are you at?” Dream asked again, this time with more force to his words. “I’m at one,” Eret lied, prepared to draw his sword. Dream’s smile turned colder. “Well that certainly makes my job easier.” Suddenly Dream had his crossbow drawn, an arrow loaded, and aimed straight for Eret’s heart. The king managed to draw his shield just as Dream fired. He barely blocked the crossbow bolt.

Suddenly, Dream had ender-pearled behind him, sword in hand. Eret whirled to block it and caught the blade on the edge of his shield. He switched his shield to his other hand, and tried to draw his own sword.

Dream took advantage of the momentary opening in his defense, and slashed at Eret’s exposed midsection. The king stepped back, and the sword only caught his shirt. Eret cursed under his breath. He had liked that shirt. He drew his sword, and tried to strike at Dream, but the warrior caught the blade on his axe handle. When had he drawn his axe?

Dream swung at Eret, and the king raised his shield to protect himself. That was exactly what Dream wanted though, as the axe sunk deep into the wood of the shield. A deep crack spread to the middle of the shield, and Eret knew that another hit like that would destroy the shield. He stumbled back, swiping at Dream.

He managed to catch the edge of the warrior’s mask, and the ceramic cracked. Dream pushed the mask away, revealing dark green eyes and a light smear of freckles. Eret took the opportunity to retreat, putting some distance between himself and Dream.

“What the hell are you doing, Dream? Why are you trying to kill me?” The warrior simply laughed, and readied his axe for another attack. Something was off about the man. The look in his eyes was crazed, bloodthirsty. Even for Dream, it seemed extreme.

Slowly, Eret’s eyes widened. “You’re not Dream, are you?” “Oh, look at that, he figured it out,” the thing that looked like Dream said. “Who are you?”

The thing didn’t respond, only attacked Eret with renewed vigor. The king backed up, desperately trying to defend himself. “Who are you?!” Eret cried, parrying the axe. The diamond edge of the weapon cut into his shield, and the wood split in two. Eret tossed the now useless defense to the ground. The distraction had cost him though.

The Dream look-alike kicked him in the chest, sending him tumbling to the ground. He barely managed to block Dream’s sword with the handle of his axe. “Who are you?” Eret growled. The Dream look-alike smiled. “I guess it couldn’t hurt to tell you. You are on your last life after all.” The handle of Eret’s axe began to splinter. It wouldn’t last much longer.

“My name is Theos Aimatos,” Dream’s look-alike said. And then the blade came down.

Sapnap had gotten hopelessly lost in Eret’s castle. He had come to see if the king had any spare glass he could use for the community house, but the castle was so large Sapnap had quickly gotten turned around.

To his right, he heard the sounds of shouting and metal against metal. He could make out one of the voices as Eret’s, but the other one sounded strange and unearthly. Was someone attacking Eret? Sapnap drew his sword, and ran towards the noise.

Just as he was about to run into the throne room, he stopped. He’d recognized the second voice. It was Dream. Cautiously he peeked around the corner, not knowing why all of his instincts were screaming at him to stay back.

He watched as Dream knocked Eret to the ground, the king barely managing to block Dream’s word. He couldn’t make out what they were saying, but Sapnap didn’t need to. Something was clearly wrong with Dream.

He noticed the runes that swirled around Dream’s enchanted blade. They were ones he had never seen before. Then he noticed that the runes were coming from Dream himself. Whoever this was, it wasn’t Dream. He had to warn Fundy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Free cookies if you can figure out what Theos Aimatos means.


	22. Chapter 22

Wilbur had managed to calm Sapnap down enough to convince him to come with them to L’manburg. He had gathered everyone, and they all stood in a loose ring in the central room of the house Wilbur had built. No one said anything about Fundy being missing. Was the fox really still so furious at his father that he refused to show up to emergency meetings?

Sapnap had been tested, and Tubbo had declared him Dreamon free. After that pronouncement, Sapnap had seemed to relax significantly. Now everyone was waiting for him to explain why he had been fleeing Eret’s castle in a hurry, and why he had been looking for Wilbur. Finally, the general’s patience wore thin.

“I don’t have all day Sapnap. Why were you looking for me? Did Eret stab Dream in the back too?” He didn’t bother hiding the glee in his voice at the prospect. It would show that stupid tyrant right if Eret double crossed him. Sapnap swallowed. “It was the other way around.”

“Dream, he was attacking Eret. But-but I don’t think it was Dream,” Sapnap said. “What do you mean?” Tubbo said, journal open, pen poised to take notes. “I mean, there were these weird runes swirling around his sword, except they weren’t coming from his sword. They were coming from him.” “Hmmm.” Tubbo tapped his pen against his chin thoughtfully. “Do you think you could draw them?” the teen asked, handing the pen and journal to Sapnap.

Wilbur scanned over Sapnap as the man scribbled the runes he had seen. “Why would Dream go after Eret? That doesn’t make any sense.” “Well, if Dream actually is possessed, he might be going after people because he needs a blood sacrifice,” Tubbo mused. “You’d think he could go after us first though since he’d be able to keep up his disguise a little longer. After all, I know who he is.” The teen turned to Sapnap. “How many lives was Eret at?” “I’m pretty sure he was at three,” Sapnap responded. “Two now, though. Dream was fighting to kill.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense,” Tubbo muttered, grabbing his journal and flipping through his notes. “The Blood God almost always tries to work from the shadows. Especially if he knows I’m on his trail. Techno said we had fought him before in the future, so he probably knows I’m at least keeping an eye out for him. I don’t know...” the teen trailed off, frustrated.

Suddenly, the doors flew open, and someone marched in, red cape billowing behind them, golden crown gleaming like fire in the sunlight. It was Eret. In an instance, everyone except Sapnap had their weapons drawn.

“What are you doing here, traitor?” Wilbur snarled. Eret held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. “I’m not here to fight, Wilbur.” “Then why the hell are you here?” Tommy snarled. “Haven’t you done enough?” Eret sighed, shoulders visibly drooping. “I know. You have every right to be mad at me. You have every right not to trust me. But I came to warn you.”

“Warn us about what?” Tubbo asked cautiously. He lacked the same venom as the others, but the fear in his eyes sent a pang of regret down Eret’s spine. “About Dream. He’s...You probably won’t believe me, but he’s not himself. I think something replaced him or-or maybe possessed him.”

Some of the tension dissipated, but no one lowered their weapons. “Well that confirms Dream is a dreamon,” Tubbo said. Tommy stepped in front of him as he paused to write something down in his journal.

“How many lives are you at, Eret?” “Two. But the Dream look-alike guy thinks I’m dead, so we have an advantage there.” “So you lied to him about how many lives you're at?” Techno said. Eret nodded. “Is there any more information you could give us?” Tubbo asked.

“Said his name was Theos Aimatos. Seemed a lot more powerful than usual. Even for Dream.” Slowly, Tubbo’s eyes widened. “What did you say his name was?” “Um, Theos Aimatos.” Eret noticed the grin that was spreading across Tubbo’s face. “What is it?” Tommy asked, still not taking his eyes off the king. Tubbo giggled. “It’s just so obvious. The dreamon’s true name is literally just old language for Blood God.” Even Wilbur couldn’t help a snort.

“Does this mean you can get that Dreamon thing out of Dream?” Sapnap asked, getting them back on topic. Tubbo nodded. “We should be able to perform an exorcism. The problem will be tracking down the Blood God. By now he definitely knows I’m after him. Fundy might have accidentally tipped him off or something.” “Actually, about that,” Wilbur butted in.

“Eret have you seen my son?” The king shook his head. “No, I haven’t. Is he missing?” “No,” Wilbur said, far too quickly. “You sure you haven’t seen him?” Techno asked. Again, Eret shook his head. “Did you and Fundy get into a fight again?” he asked Wilbur. Slowly, his shoulders slumped and he nodded defeatedly. “He should be back by now,” Tommy said, a hint of fear creeping into his voice.

“Wait a minute!” Eret said suddenly, making them all jump. “I saw Dream coming out of the...” Suddenly his expression turned sheepish, and his voice softened. “Out of the Final Control Room.”

Tommy and Wilbur flinched. Tubbo’s grip tightened on his journal, and Wilbur’s jaw clenched. “Why were you that close to L’manburg? You’re banned, remember?” the general snarled. “I was just looking for flowers. I promise,” Eret said. Suddenly Tubbo butted in.

“The blood God’s probably captured Fundy. He and Dream are together, so killing him might sever the dreamon’s hold over Dream.” Tubbo met Wilbur’s eyes reluctantly. “If the Blood God has all of Dream’s memories, which I’m sure he does, then he’d probably be keeping Fundy in the Final Control Room. It’s the one place we’d never go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dear God, this chapter did not want to get written.
> 
> Thank you for all of the sweet comments and kudos and bookmarks. They really make my day anytime I see them. Thank you so, so much.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "...Trauma had a way of burning memories deeper into the mind."
> 
> -Dan Brown

Tommy’s brow furrowed as he undid the straps on the breastplate. “Tubbo...I don’t want to question you or anything, since you know more about this than we do...but are you sure we need armor?” Tubbo nodded. “I know it goes against everything we stand for, but I-I can’t lose anyone else, okay? And I don’t have the time to make you guys the protective stuff we really need. Armor’s the closest I can give you.” “Okay,” Tommy said, slipping on the diamond material without protest.

Wilbur wasn’t so easily convinced. Technoblade kept trying to convince him that as the general, his life was the most important, and since he had only one life left, he needed the armor more than anyone. Wilbur didn’t believe it, and after a while, Techno simply dropped it.

Sapnap had the best gear out of all of them, with shining, enchanted netherite. Tommy couldn’t help but be a little bit jealous. When the man caught Tommy’s longing stare, he chuckled sheepishly. “Uh, sorry. This is all I have. If I had any spare pieces, I’d give it to you kids in a heartbeat.” “I don’t want any of your ‘pity armor.’ Besides,” he muttered under his breath. “I’m not a kid.” He glanced over at Eret, and noticed the king was empty handed.

“Hey, Eret? Don’t you have any armor?” Eret shook his head. “No. All my stuff is back at the castle.” Slowly, Tommy smiled. “Yeah, we probably don’t have time to grab it all.” Quickly, he began rooting through the chests. After a moment, he managed to dig up a set of beaten-up leather armor. He handed it to Eret. “There you go! You can use this.”  
Tommy smiled innocently. Eret took it reluctantly, and Tommy could tell he was forcing himself to look grateful. Tubbo was hiding his smirk behind his journal. “You’ll need a sword too,” Tubbo said, not bothering to hide the mischief, and began rooting through the chests. He dug up an iron sword and handed it to Eret. “I don’t think we have any diamond. Sorry; guess you’ll just have to make do.” Eret took it, and managed not to complain at how under equipped he was.

“Is everyone ready?” Wilbur asked. The group nodded. “Okay then. Here’s how it’s gonna go. We’re gonna go down there, we’re gonna bust the place open, beat up anyone who gets in our way.” They nodded and Wilbur glanced pointedly at Eret. “I’m not gonna do anything stupid. I want Fundy to be okay just as much as you guys do,” the king said. Wilbur ignored him.

“Tommy, you’re in front with me,” Wilbur said, getting them back on track. The teen nodded. “Technoblade, Tubbo, watch our backs. Techno, don’t let anything happen to him. We’re gonna need you if we run into the dreamon.” “Yes sir,” Tubbo said as Techno simply nodded in understanding. “Eret, Sapnap, you’re in the middle.” The two signaled their agreement. “Everyone understand?” They did. The group secured their weapons, and made their way to the tunnel that led to the Final Control Room.

Wilbur and Tommy crept through the tunnel, swords held out in front of them, lanterns in their other hand. Tommy was so desperately focused on trying not to remember what had happened the last time he had gone down this tunnel, he almost didn’t notice the change in the passageway itself. Once he did, he held out his hand in a signal to stop.  
“What is it?” Wilbur asked, voice barely even a whisper. “Look,” Tommy said, pointing to the sloped ground. “There didn’t use to be stairs in this part of the tunnel. Someone added them later.” “You’re right,” Wilbur said, glancing back at Eret. “Any ideas?” he asked the king.

“We didn’t put stairs here so it would be harder for you guys to escape.” Tommy tried not to flinch at the mention of what had happened. Eret pondered the stairs. “He wants us to come in,” Techno said. “This has to be a trap.” Wilbur sighed tiredly. “We don’t have much of a choice if we want Fundy back. Let’s keep going.”

Fundy dug his fingers into the small crack in the wall, and pulled with all his might. He had to get out of here and warn the others that they had been right about the dreamon. He was probably being used as bait for some kind of trap anyways, so it would be best if he could rescue himself. The blackstone walls refused to move. He pulled harder anyways.   
He had already tried the button in the center of the room. It had been disabled. Fundy wasn’t sure whether or not he was relieved about that. On one hand, it would be nice to have an exit route. On the other hand though, he wasn’t sure how he would react to the sight of the doors opening like that again.

He was trying to find the piston doors and open them manually. So far he hadn’t been successful. He was sure that this was the one the blood god had come through. After about ten minutes though, he had to admit that he was getting nowhere. He sat down heavily, and picked at his nails. He had hopelessly ruined the skin of his fingertips by tugging at the walls. Fundy didn’t care. He needed to get out of here.

He tried to think of any other exits from the room. He remembered where the other doors were, the one’s Dream and the others had come out of. They’d probably been disabled as well, though. After all, you only needed one entrance to a prison.

Suddenly, the door slid open, and Fundy leapt to his feet. The Blood God stepped through, and the door shut behind him. Fundy’s tail flicked nervously, and he snarled at the dreamon. “Oh, Fundy, there’s no need to be like that. I just wanted to talk to you for a bit.” The fox reminded himself that this wasn’t the man he loved, no matter how much he looked like him.

“What do you want, Blood God?” he spat. “Oh, I just thought you might want to know what happened to George and Eret.” “What are you-” Fundy noticed the crack that spread across Dream’s mask. The pieces started to click into place. George must have been at one life the last time Fundy had seen him, and the state of Dream’s mask spoke of a fight. He didn’t want to ask what had happened, but it was clear the Dreamon was waiting for him to do just that.

“What-” he swallowed. “What did you do to them?” The Blood God casually straightened the cuff of Dream’s hoodie. “I took care of them.” “What do you mean you took care of them?” Fundy asked, not quite understanding. Not wanting to understand. “Well, after those fights with Technoblade, George was only at one life. You know, for a soldier, he’s surprisingly susceptible to ambushes.”

“And-and Eret?” Fundy asked, hesitatingly. The dreamon grinned. “His castle is very poorly defended, especially for a king. I can’t believe it was as easy as it was.” The fox’s ears flattened against his head. The Dreamon smirked. “But-But I thought...I thought he had all three lives left,” Fundy protested. The dreamon simply laughed, “Well, I guess that’s just another thing he lied to you about.”

Fundy wasn’t sure how to feel. On one hand, it was Eret. He had betrayed them. He had led Fundy to his death. On the other hand, it was Eret. Despite everything, Fundy had been planning to crash at his castle for a few days before he had been captured.

Suddenly, his ears twitched. He could hear the sounds of footsteps and soft talking. He tried his best to hide his reaction, but the Blood God must have noticed, because he smiled and slid Dream’s mask into place. “That’s my cue. I’ll be back once I take care of your friends.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm maybe technically not supposed to be writing fanfics. WHich means sometimes I have to hide what I'm writing from my Mom. Hence the late upload.
> 
> Oh man you guys are in for a doozy the next few chapters.


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Being brave isn't the absence of fear. Being brave is having that fear but finding a way through it."

Tommy heard the sound of pistons firing from the other end of the tunnel. Had the Dreamon already beaten them there? Probably not. They would have seen him come in. Besides, he was probably imagining things. Being back in the tunnel was freaking him out more than he cared to admit. His grip tightened on the hilt of his sword. It was far too quiet down here. This had to be a trap.

He scanned the smooth stone walls for any signs of a redstone contraption, but saw none. He was probably being paranoid. But he couldn’t make himself forget the feeling of the flames that had caught on his jacket, couldn’t make himself forget the bite of Dream’s diamond sword, couldn’t forget the button under his hand. He had been the one to press it. In his excitement at seeing the bunker, he had pressed it before Eret could. He had been the one to sentence his friends to death.

Suddenly, he heard a rock skittering behind him, and whirled around. Sapnap held his hands up in a sign of surrender. Tommy realized his sword was level with the man’s chest. “Sorry,” he said sheepishly, and turned to face the other way. Gently, Wilbur put a hand on his shoulder.

“I know being back here isn’t the most pleasant experience, Tommy. I’m just as freaked out as you are. But I need my right hand man next to me,” he said. “I can’t have you freaking out right now, okay?” Tommy nodded. “I understand, Wilbur.” Then trying to muster up some of his usual bluster, he said, “Besides, I’m not some scaredy cat who gets freaked out by some random tunnel.” Wilbur rolled his eyes and ignored the teen.

They reached the end of the flat portion of the tunnel way. In front of them rose the stairway that led to the Final Control Room. Tommy’s grip on his sword was so tight he was surprised it hadn’t broken yet. “I can’t do this,” a part of his mind whispered. “I’m not afraid of some stupid tunnel,” he muttered to himself.

“Maybe not,” Dream’s voice rang out through the passageway, echoing off the stone. Tommy could barely hear it over the pounding in his chest. “But you should be afraid of what’s at the end of it.”

Dream stepped out of the shadows, and stood at the top of the stairwell. His mask was secured in place, but it had been cracked down the center. His hands were empty, but Tommy knew from experience just how quickly the warrior could draw a weapon. He raised his sword and readied himself for a fight.

“Blood God,” Tubbo called from the back of the group. Dream- no, it was a dreamon, Tommy reminded himself- smirked. “Is that little Tubbo down there? It’s been a while.” Tommy could practically feel the anger radiating off his friend. “Not long enough, Blood God. Let Fundy go, get out of Dream’s body, and never come back, and maybe I’ll consider not killing you.”

Tommy glanced back at Tubbo, surprised by the confidence in the teen’s voice. Tubbo actually sounded like he meant it. Tommy did his best to hold back a laugh. If Tubbo was willing to fight, they had this in the bag. He turned back to face the Blood God, but he was gone.

Suddenly, purple particles filled Tommy’s vision, and the dreamon was in front of him. He brought his sword up to defend himself just as Dream swiped at his throat. The force of the blow pushed him back, and he nearly lost his balance.

Wilbur swung at Dream’s head, but the warrior ducked, sweeping Tommy’s feet out from under him in the process. The teen landed hard on the floor, all the air suddenly knocked out of his lungs. He forced himself to stand up.

The Blood God and Wilbur were now exchanging blows, both of their backs pressed against the wall. The tunnel was much too narrow for proper combat, but Dream clearly had the advantage.

Wilbur was used to fighting in wide open fields, with plenty of space to maneuver. Dream was used to fighting in forests, where trees and plants constantly limited your movement. Any moment now, Dream would strike the killing blow.

Tommy lunged for the green-clad warrior, but suddenly, Dream had his shield out and managed to block the strike. He parried the blade and pushed Tommy back, but in his distraction, Wilbur swiped at his mask, and managed to catch the leather strap. With nothing to secure it in place, it fell away revealing dark green eyes and a light smattering of freckles.

The Blood God gritted his teeth, and lunged for Wilbur. The man barely managed to move out of the way, and the sword caught the shoulder of his jacket, tearing a large gash in the blue cloth.

Tommy thrust at Dream’s midsection, but when the warrior blocked it, brought his other hand up and smashed his lantern into the side of Dream’s head. The glass shattered, killing the light instantly. Dream stumbled back, surprised at the attack, and Wilbur kicked him in the stomach, knocking him further off balance.

Dream tossed his shield to the side, and gently touched the spot where the lantern had slammed into him. His hand came away dotted with blood. He lunged at Tommy furiously, and the teen barely managed to dodge the blade. Too late, he noticed the ender pearl in Dream’s other hand.

Suddenly, he was at the other end of the tunnel. Dream leapt for Tubbo, who was still trying to figure out where Dream had gone. He turned around just as the warrior brought his sword down on the teen’s head. Techno leapt in front of Tubbo, and caught the edge of Dream’s sword of the hilt of his sword.

The pig tossed his own lantern aside and drew his axe with his now free hand. He swiped at Dream with the weapon, but the warrior sidestepped, untangling his and Techno’s blades. “So, that’s how you want to play,” Dream said, exchanging his own sword for an axe.

Runes began to swirl around the handle of Dream’s axe, and Tubbo cursed. “Don’t let that axe hit you!” he shouted, as Technoblade parried the weapon with his sword. “Wasn’t plannin’ on it,” the pig-themed warrior muttered.

Eret yanked Tubbo out of the way of another blow and stepped in front of him protectively. “Tubbo, you might want to get started on some kind of exorcism thing.” “Oh, um, right.”

The teen began flipping through the pages of his journal, and Tommy drew his bow. “Wil,” he said. “We need to get up to the top of those stairs. It’s too narrow in here for the swords. Besides that way we can still fight without having to worry about him pearling behind us.” Wilbur nodded and drew his own bow.

The two ran up the stairs, and about halfway, Wilbur stopped and nocked an arrow. He aimed for Dream, and let it fly. The arrow only barely missed, and the warrior’s head snapped up. He cursed once he spotted Wilbur and Tommy.

The distraction cost him though, as Techno dug the edge of his axe into Dream’s side. Tommy nocked an arrow himself, and took aim, but couldn’t get an opening. He cursed. “I can’t get a clear shot,” he said to Wilbur. “I’m going higher.” The general nodded, and readied another arrow.

Tommy shouldered his bow, and climbed the last few stairs to the top. In front of him rose a blackstone wall. It was mostly clean and unscathed, except for the light layer of dust that came from sliding into the rock face. But Tommy remembered what it looked like smeared with blood and ash.

He remembered the sound of screams, his own included. He remembered how Tubbo had called out for help, how Wilbur had screamed for them to get out. He remembered it all.

His breathing shortened, and his grip tightened on his bow. When had he drawn it?

His heart was pounding, blocking any noise of battle. But he couldn’t block out any of the sounds in his head.

Hadn’t he been in battle a minute ago? Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flash of purple particles. He whirled around, an arrow already loaded in his bow. Below him, Wilbur was still kneeling down, arrow nocked. Dream stood behind him, axe raised.

Tommy must have shouted or something, because Wilbur’s head snapped up, just in time to the axe coming down on his head. Tommy’s bow clattered to the ground, and he lunged for Dream, tackling him around the middle.

The two went tumbling down the stairs. Tommy managed to stand up but nearly passed out. He couldn’t feel his side. He glanced down and saw the head of the axe buried in his side, Dream’s hand still on the hilt.

With a smile, the Blood God pulled it out, and exchanged it for a sword. Tommy bit back a cry of pain. The teen scrambled for his own blade, but realized it had been lost in the fall. Shakily, he drew his axe, and held it aloft. “Bring it on you son of a-”

He never got the chance to finish though, as Dream drove his sword through Tommy’s heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha
> 
> Suffer.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Tubbo can go a little feral. As a treat."
> 
> -the entirety of the fandom at this point.

Tubbo screamed. He couldn’t lose Tommy. He wouldn’t. Tossing his journal aside, he drew his sword and lunged for the Blood God. Surprised by the sudden onslaught, the dreamon only barely managed to defend himself.

Tubbo slashed at Dream’s face, and managed to graze his cheek. He twisted his hand, and slammed the hilt of his sword into Dream’s skull. The Dreamon stumbled, and Tubbo raised his sword to strike the killing blow. Dream just barely managed to block the blade with the handle of his own weapon.

Tubbo forced the handle of the axe down until it was pressed against Dream’s chest. “How dare you. How dare you.” “Aww,” the dreamon said mockingly. “Did you care about that idiot, Little Tubbo?” Tubbo responded by kicking Dream in the stomach, knocking him off balance.

“It was his own fault you know. Kids shouldn’t be fighting battles like this,” the dreamon said. “So save yourself before I kill you, little Tubbo. Take your friend and run far, far away. Who knows? Maybe I won’t come after you if you do.”

“Shut up,” Tubbo growled, lunging for the Blood God. He managed to land a glancing blow to Dream’s arm. The dreamon swiped at his throat, but Tubbo sidestepped it.

Suddenly, an arrow sprouted from Dream’s shoulder. Tubbo glanced up to see Wilbur standing atop the stairs, bow in hand. Tubbo had never seen the general so furious.

“Tubbo, get up here and find a way to get to Fundy. I’m gonna go find Tommy.” Tubbo nodded, and shoved Dream to the side. “Sapnap, you’re with me,” Wilbur said. Tubbo ran up the stairs, ducking as Wilbur fired off another arrow. “Eret, Techno,” the general said. “Give Dream hell.”

Tubbo drew his pick, and began to swing at the blackstone. He couldn’t help the slight grin on his face as he did. Tommy had thought packing it would be useless. Turns out it was exactly what he needed. “Take that Tommy!” he muttered before quickly sobering.

He knew the teen would still have one life left, but he couldn’t help the fear that Tommy was permanently dead. His grip tightened on his pickaxe and he swung again. He heard someone shuffling around from inside the room. He paused. “Fundy is that you?” The shuffling stopped. “Tubbo?” a soft voice cried from inside. Tubbo recognized the fox’s voice instantly. “Hold on Fundy! I’m gonna get you out of there.”

He began hacking at the blackstone more quickly, determined to rescue his friend. “Tubbo!” Fundy called out. “You were right! Dream, he’s a-” “I know. He went after Eret. Good news is I know his true name now. We can save Dream. I promise.”

Tubbo swung again, and this time a thin crack spread across the length of the piston door. Tubbo hammered at it with the handle of his pickaxe until pieces of blackstone began to fall away. “Fundy, stand back!”

Tubbo buried the head of his pickaxe into the small hole he had made, and pulled. A large chunk fell away from the door. Tubbo could see Fundy standing at the other end of the room. His face broke out into a grin, but it quickly fell when he saw the button in the middle of the room.

He shook his head and swung his pickaxe. “Focus.” He pried away another chunk of blackstone, and the hole was now large enough for Fundy to pearl through. Tubbo tossed him one, and a moment and a shower of purple particles later, the fox was standing next to him.

“What do you say we kick the crap out of that stupid dreamon?” Fundy growled. “Couldn’t have said it better myself,” Tubbo said with a grin. He passed Fundy his axe and hefted his sword. “Let’s do this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy new year everyone!
> 
> Also, I'm sorry for the short chapter today, but writer's block is a pain.


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't let that axe hit you!"
> 
> Tubbo, chapter 24

The Blood God yanked the arrow out of his shoulder and tossed it to the ground. Techno noticed the wound was already knitting itself back together. That was going to make him a lot harder to defeat.

Techno raised his sword, and drew his shield. He had lost his axe at some point during the commotion. Above him he could hear the sounds of Tubbo chipping away at the wall to the Final Control Room.

“So,” Dream said after a moment. “You survived.” The statement was directed at Eret. The king simply raised his sword in response. “You went after Fundy,” Eret said, voice even. “Just doing what I have to do,” Dream said with a shrug. “If it makes you feel any better, he’s fine. Can’t actually do anything to him or I lose control of this vessel.” Slowly the dreamon smiled. “That doesn’t apply to the rest of you though.”

Dream leapt at them, axe clearly aiming to cleave Eret’s crown in two. Technoblade shoved Eret out of the way, and intercepted the weapon with his shield. A few splinters fell away from the wooden plank, but otherwise, the shield was fine.

Eret swept his sword to the side, and managed to strike a glancing blow to the dreamon’s side, right where Tommy had dug his axe in earlier. Dream cursed, and yanked his axe head out of Techno’s shield.

As he did so, Techno raised his sword, and brought it down on the handle of Dream’s axe. The wood cracked and splintered, but still held firm. The runes swirling around the handle sent out a pulse wave that knocked Techno back a couple inches, and sent Eret flying.

Small black veins began to spread underneath Dream’s eyes, and the runes around his axe began to glow brighter. “He must be straining himself,” Techno thought. “Good.” “Keep it up!” the pig called to Eret. “We need to buy Tubbo some time.” The king nodded, and quickly scrambled to his feet.

“Keep him distracted,” Eret muttered under his breath. “I’ll try to pearl behind him and distract him.” Techno nodded and handed an ender pearl to Eret.

The pig thrust at Dream, but when the warrior parried the blow, swept his feet out from under him. Dream stumbled back, but quickly regained his balance. Techno noticed wisps of black smoke sprouting from his back, almost like wings.

“Those wings must be useful in battle,” he commented, trying to draw the dreamon’s attention. It must have worked, because Dream grinned.

“They are,” he said, adjusting his grip on his axe. “You know what else is a useful ability?” “What?” Technoblade said, humoring the dreamon. Dream’s grin widened. “This.”

He swept his axe in a wide arc, and a blast of raw power emanated out from it, sending both Techno and Eret flying, as well as clearing a large ring of stone and rock from the tunnel around them.

Rubble was now blocking the corridor they had come from, and they were standing in what was effectively a large cavern. Dream stood at the opposite end, axe held in front of him, ready for the next attack. Eret and Techno stumbled to their feet.

As they did, Techno noticed the flick of Eret’s wrist, as well as the way he undid his king’s cloak. Techno needed to keep the dreamon focused on himself. “Neat trick. Regular old combat is better though. You figure out who the better warrior is that way. What do you say?”

Dream shrugged. “I don’t see why not. Let’s find out if you really are worthy of my title, Technoblade.” Suddenly, a shower of purple sparks erupted behind the Blood God, and Eret swung his cloak in front of Dream’s face, blocking his view.

Dream struggled to free himself from the thick red fabric, but Techno rushed in and kicked him in the stomach. The dreamon stumbled back, and Eret pulled his cloak tighter. Dream dropped his axe, and tried to pull the cloak away from his face. Techno raised his sword to strike the killing blow.

Suddenly, the dreamon kicked at Technoblade, scooping his axe up in the process, and deftly catching it. He swung it back, and managed to catch Eret in the side. The weapon buried itself all the way up to the hilt.

The king stumbled back, wrenching the weapon out of Dream’s grasp, and letting his cloak fall to the floor.

Dream swept Techno’s feet out from under him, and kicked Eret in the stomach. His hands closed around the handle of the axe and he yanked it out.

“Eret!” someone screamed from the other end of the room. It was Fundy. Black veins began to spread across Eret’s torso, and a moment later, the king was nothing but a pile of dust. For the first time in a while, a pang of fear shot down Technoblade’s spine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Suffer part two: Electric Boogaloo
> 
> Also sorry for the late upload. I don't know if it's writer's block or burnout or my own short attention span or what, but I should have the next chapter out to you guys sooner. It'll probably be easier once chool starts back up again cause then it'll be easier to focus.


	27. Chapter 27

Fundy watched as Eret crumbled to dust before his very eyes. Before he could even process the fact that Eret was actually alive, and that he had just seen the king lose another life, his vision turned red.

Suddenly, he was flying down the stairs, axe raised. Someone was screaming. It was probably him. He tried to bring his axe down on the Blood God’s head, but the dreamon deftly caught the weapon with the handle of his own axe.

“Aw, Fundy, I didn’t realize you cared so much about that coward. Didn’t he betray you?” the dreamon crowed. The fox gritted his teeth, and disentangled his and Dream’s weapons. “I’d think you’d know better than to care about him after something as cowardly as that.”

“Shut up,” Fundy growled, swiping at the Blood God again. “He’s a braver man than you’ll ever be, you filthy dreamon.” Fundy managed to get a glancing blow to the dreamon’s arm. “Ah ah ah,” Dream warned.

“Dream is my vessel, remember? If you hurt me, you also hurt your beloved.” Fundy hesitated for a moment, but suddenly, Techno kicked Dream in the back, sending the man stumbling forward. “Good thing I have no such reservations then,” the pig-themed warrior said, swiping at the dreamon’s throat with his sword.

Tubbo found his way down the stairs and into the cavern. He shoved his journal into Fundy’s hands. “Get started on the spell. Technoblade and I will distract him.” “But-but-” the fox started to protest. “Do it Fundy. You’re pretty much the only one we can risk doing something other than fighting,” Techno said, keeping the Blood God off balance.

“I’m better at combat than you are, and you know more about this whole dreamon thing than I do. And I need Tubbo because he’s fought this guy before. You will be doing more to help Dream if you start that spell. Now!”

Fundy nodded, and Tubbo tossed him a satchel. The boy must have hidden it in his jacket or something, because the fox hadn’t seen it when he had been rescued. Quickly, he pulled out the chalk and began drawing a large circle around the three fighters.

Tubbo and Techno fought like demons, keeping Dream unbalanced and off his feet. Tubbo was doing his best not to hurt the green-clad warrior, but Technoblade had far less hesitation than he did. Whatever wounds they did manage to land almost instantly repaired themselves, but it was clear that the dreamon was begging to show signs of fatigue.

Tubbo and Technoblade, however, had no such problems. Techno was used to taking on long, nearly impossible fights all by himself. Tubbo distantly wondered if this was even a challenge for the pig-themed warrior. And Tubbo, well, Tubbo wanted his revenge.

He swung at the dreamon wildly. “You killed them!” he screamed, blood pounding in his ears. “You killed Eret. You killed Tommy! There was no reason to do that! They’re innocent!” The Blood God attempted to knock him off balance, but Techno attacked him from the side.

“You killed my Dad!” Tubbo yelled, desperately trying to land a hit. Dream smirked. “Not my fault he was an idiotic coward. Although I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

Tubbo parried the dreamon’s strike, but it sent him reeling. “Face it, little Tubbo,” the Blood God said. “You’re nothing but a kid who keeps getting in over his head.”

Tubbo’s ears were ringing, and he stumbled back, not sure if it was from his fury, or if it was because he knew the dreamon was right. Suddenly, Technoblade swung at Dream’s throat.

The Blood God caught the blade in his hand, and yanked it out of Techno’s grip. Despite the large cut on his hand, he didn’t seem injured in the slightest.

He swung his axe towards the pig-warrior’s head, but Techno ducked, and it was only the handle of the weapon that struck him.

The runes glowed even brighter than they had before, and released another blast, that sent Technoblade flying into the opposite wall of the cavern. His head hit the stone with a sickening crunch, and the warrior slid to the ground, unconscious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise I meant to get this out to you guys yesterday, but, um, well...I may have gotten distracted by certain stuff that was happening in my country yesterday as well as the doomsday streams yesterday. I am really sorry I keep getting these out to you late. I'll try to keep up the schedule I had before, but don't be surprised if updates are slower.
> 
> Also, I think I'm officially a Ranboo simp now.


	28. Chapter 28

Tubbo immediately rushed to Techno’s side, praying the warrior was alright. But before he could check on him, something swept his legs out from under him. He crashed to the floor, and all the air was suddenly knocked out of his lungs.

Dream planted his foot on Tubbo’s chest, and leveled the head of his axe with Tubbo’s throat. The teen knew better than to try and fight back. Dream ground his heel into Tubbo’s sternum. “I wonder how many lives you’re at, little Tubbo.” The axe pressed closer.

“I know you died in Eret’s little death trap up there. So that means you’re at two lives.” Tubbo gritted his teeth. He really hoped Fundy was done laying out the ritual. He could’ve used the help.

“Of course,” the Blood God continued. “You could have died somewhere else along the line and I wouldn’t know about it.” Dream smiled. “Only one way to find out.”  
He raised his axe above his head, prepared to bring it down on Tubbo’s head, but suddenly, something slammed into the back of the dreamon’s skull.

He dropped the axe, and staggered to the side, clutching at the back of his head. Fundy stood behind him, a large piece of rubble clutched in his hands. It shone with Dream’s blood.

“Sorry, babe,” Tubbo heard the fox mutter under his breath. Then he dropped the stone, and pulled Tubbo to his feet. “Did you finish the setting up the ritual?” the teen asked hurriedly. Fundy nodded. “We just need to light it.”

“Understood.” Tubbo pulled his flint and steel out of his jacket, and moved to the chalk circle Fundy had drawn. It was already sprinkled with coal dust, ready to be lit aflame.  
Suddenly, Tubbo heard the sound of metal against metal, and glanced back to see that the Blood God had recovered. He and Fundy were exchanging blows, but the fox had the clear advantage. It was only a matter of time before the dreamon recovered the upper hand though. Quickly, Tubbo began clicking his flint and steel together, hoping to get a spark.

After a moment he managed to get one large enough to start a tiny flame at the edge of the flint. He was ready to drop it onto the coal dust Fundy had laid, but suddenly, Dream’s voice stopped him. “Wait!”

He turned around to see that the Blood God had the edge of his axe to Fundy’s neckt. The fox had been disarmed, and Tubbo cursed under his breath though. It wasn’t the hostage that had caused the dreamon to call out though.

“If you light this spell, you’ll never get to see your father again.”

Tubbo froze. “What?” he whispered, voice shaking more than he would have liked. Dream smiled. “That’s right, little Tubbo. I killed Jardon. Which means I have control of his soul. I could bring him back for you. All you have to do,” the dreamon said. “Is not light this spell.”

Tubbo’s jaw tightened. It was too good to be true, wasn’t it? But he knew instinctively that the Blood God wasn’t lying. “You can-I-I can see dad again?” He hated how much like a little kid he sounded.

Dream nodded softly. “You can. But I’m only giving you this chance once. Take it. What would your father say if you just abandoned him like that?” The teen’s brow furrowed in determination.

“He’d say to do the right thing. He’d want me to protect my new family.” Tubbo let the flint and steel drop.

Almost instantly, the circle of coal caught fire, and the flames were nearly as tall as Tubbo himself. Dream’s smile dropped. “Well, you can’t say I didn’t try.” He shoved Fundy to the ground, and adjusted his grip on his axe.

Suddenly, Dream was on Tubbo, swinging wildly with his axe, trying to push the teen into the flames. Tubbo struggled to draw his sword and block the attacks at the same time. There was no way he would be able to perform the spell like this. “Fundy!” he yelled.

Thank God, the fox understood. He scrambled to his feet, and snatched up Tubbo’s journal, and flipped open to the page he needed. It was labeled “Exorcism” in large black print. “Well, that’s convenient,” Fundy muttered.

Quickly, he began reciting the spell under his breath. “Bᔑリ╎ᓭ⍑ Theos Aimatos ⎓∷𝙹ᒲ ℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᓭ ᒲ𝙹∷ℸ ̣ ᔑꖎ !¡ꖎᔑリᒷ. Lᒷℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᒲ リᒷ⍊ᒷ∷ ∷ᒷℸ ̣ ⚍∷リ, ᔑリ↸ ꖎᒷℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᒲ ꖎᒷᔑ⍊ᒷ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ʖ𝙹↸|| 𝙹⎓ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ !¡𝙹𝙹∷ ⍊ᒷᓭᓭᒷꖎ ⍑ᒷ ╎リ⍑ᔑʖ╎ℸ ̣ ᓭ, ᔑリ↸ ꖎᒷℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᒲ リᒷ⍊ᒷ∷ ↸𝙹 ⍑ᔑ∷ᒲ ᔑ⊣ᔑ╎リ. Bᔑリ╎ᓭ⍑ ⍑╎ᒲ ʖᔑᓵꖌ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ꖎᔑリ↸ ⍑ᒷ ᓵᔑᒲᒷ ⎓∷𝙹ᒲ ᓭ𝙹 ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ╎ᓭ ᔑᓭ ⊣𝙹𝙹↸ ᔑᓭ ↸ᒷᔑ↸. Mᔑ|| ⍑ᒷ リᒷ⍊ᒷ∷ ∷ᒷℸ ̣ ⚍∷リ ᔑ⊣ᔑ╎リ”

Fundy continued to chant as the flames around them grew higher, and Tubbo continued to exchange blows with Dream. Fundy refused to look at them, not wanting to see what would happen if either the dreamon or Tubbo landed a fatal hit. He just focused on his chanting.

Suddenly, he was snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of Tubbo crying out in pain. A large gash ran down his shoulder, and Dream’s axe was covered in blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oリꖎ|| ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ʖᒷꖎ𝙹⍊ᒷ↸ ᓵᔑリ ⎓∷ᒷᒷ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ !¡𝙹ᓭᓭᒷᓭᓭᒷ↸.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning for mild body horror I guess.
> 
> (It is an exorcism after all.)

Tubbo stumbled back, but he recovered his footing quickly, and blocked the dreamon’s next strike. He glanced behind him and saw that Fundy had stopped chanting, staring at him in shock. “How-how are you not dead?” the fox asked incredulously, staring at the runes swirling around Dream’s axe.

“The jacket’s got protective lining,” the teen tossed over his shoulder. “His axe won’t do anything to me.” Tubbo dodged another one of the Dreamon’s strikes. “Keep chanting! We need to stop the Blood God, now!” Fundy nodded and turned his attention back to his book.

“Bᒷ⊣𝙹リᒷ! f∷ᒷᒷ ⍑╎ᒲ! Bᒷ⊣𝙹リᒷ! f∷ᒷᒷ ⍑╎ᒲ! Bᒷ⊣𝙹リᒷ! f∷ᒷᒷ ⍑╎ᒲ! Bᒷ⊣𝙹リᒷ! f∷ᒷᒷ ⍑╎ᒲ! Bᒷ⊣𝙹リᒷ! f∷ᒷᒷ ⍑╎ᒲ! Bᒷ⊣𝙹リᒷ! f∷ᒷᒷ ⍑╎ᒲ! Bᒷ⊣𝙹リᒷ! f∷ᒷᒷ ⍑╎ᒲ!”

His chanting began to get faster, and the flames around them began to roar. Tubbo barely managed to dodge Dream’s blows, the exhaustion of the battle finally catching up with him.

The dreamon was now attacking him with single minded focus, not bothering to taunt the teen. If he was going down, Tubbo was going down with him.

The edge of Dream’s axe barely missed Tubbo’s abdomen, and the teen leapt back, nearly losing his balance.

The Blood God swept his feet out from under him, but as he fell, Tubbo raised his sword striking blindly, and felt the metal bite into Dream’s shoulder. This time, the wound didn’t heal.

Dream twisted to the side, and wrenched the sword from Tubbo’s grasp, sending his stumbling back unarmed and vulnerable. The dreamon raised his axe, prepared to strike the killing blow, but suddenly, the flames shot up the wall of the cavern, converging on the ceiling, completely surrounding the three fighters in a ball of flame.

The veins under Dream’s eyes grew darker, and he stumbled back, disoriented. “No! No, no, no, no, no!” the dreamon yelled, clutching at his head.

Tubbo scrambled to his feet and quickly gathered up his weapon; he leveled his sword with Dream’s chest. He didn’t do anything else though. The spell Fundy was reciting would take care of that. Slowly, black particles began emanating off of Dream, and the Blood God screamed.

He staggered forward, but dropped to his knees. The particles began to peel away faster, gathering in the air in front of Dream. forming a large, writing black mass that hovered in the air. Tubbo knew it was the Blood God’s true form.

He would never forget that night in the Devil’s mine. The only difference was that now he wouldn’t stop until he had won. He wouldn’t stop until he had avenged his dad, Tommy, and even Eret.

Dream’s eyes were glowing black, and he began rambling in the old language. Tubbo only caught a few words, but he knew the dreamon was trying to recite a spell to save himself.  
Tubbo kicked the warrior in the face, and sent him sprawling to the ground.

“None of that, thank you.” The Blood God pulled his knees to his chest as more black particles began floating off his body. “I’m...not gonna...let you win.” Tubbo smirked. “Good thing you don’t have a choice then, you nasty, disgusting son of a [the following sentences are not fit for print.]”

Once Tubbo had finished his tirade, he turned to Fundy. “Do it.” The fox nodded, and spoke the last sentence of the incantation. “F∷ᒷᒷ ℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᓭ ╎リリ𝙹ᓵᒷリℸ ̣ ᓭ𝙹⚍ꖎ ᔑリ↸ ʖ⚍∷リ ╎リ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ⍑ᒷꖎꖎ 𝙹⎓ ||𝙹⚍∷ 𝙹∴リ ᒲᔑꖌ╎リ⊣!”

The dreamon gave a final, ear-piercing scream, and suddenly, the room went quiet.

The flames were gone, and the cavern was unnervingly quiet. Fundy and Tubbo held their breath, not wanting to risk messing up the ritual.

Softly, Dream groaned. Immediately, Fundy rushed to his side, but Tubbo held out his arm, wincing as he did so. The blow to his shoulder had been deeper than he’d thought.

“We don’t know if it’s actually him,” the teen explained to his fox companion. Fundy looked like he wanted to protest, but he nodded. Softly, the man in the green hoodie began to stir.

“Dream?” the fox murmured quietly, with more gentleness in his voice than Tubbo had ever heard from the man. Slowly, Dream uncurled and sat up. He glanced in the direction Fundy’s voice had come from, eyes unfocused., and blinked at the pair blearily. “Fundy?”

In an instant, he was kneeling at Dream’s side, pulling the warrior into a hug. Dream winced, but returned the hug anyways. They stayed like that for a few moments, Dream’s hands twisting into the fabric of Fundy’s jacket, holding on for dear life, the fox whispering soft reassurances. Tubbo decided it would be best to give the two a moment alone.

“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

“Shh, shh, it’s okay,” Fundy murmured in Dream’s ear. “You’re safe now. I promise.” Dream broke down in tears. “I hurt so many people. I did so many awful things. I’m so sorry.”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Fundy whispered. “That wasn’t you. We know that wasn’t you. No one blames you. I promise.” “But I hurt you so much. I hurt you and George and Sapnap and WIlbur and Eret and Tubbo and Tommy and oh God I killed Tommy. How could I have done that? Why did I do that? Why did I let that thing do that?”

Dream’s panicked rant was cut off by another sob. Fundy pulled him closer. “That wasn’t you. You couldn’t have stopped. It’s not your fault. I promise. You are not to blame.” “But I am. I could’ve stopped it. I should have stopped. And I did...did all those things. How could anyone possibly forgive me after that?”

Fundy knew Dream was probably in shock. He wouldn’t get through to him, not right now at least. Instead, he just held him close. “I’ve got you babe.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> God this chapter did not want to get written.
> 
> I really do hope you guys enjoyed it though. It was a blast to write, especially the Dream and Fundy fluff. Have a wonderful day!


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y'all deserve some fluff

They were back in L’manburg. Technically, they had never left it, but now the bright green fields and clear blue sky felt like an entirely different world from the tunnel that led to the Final Control Room. They were gathered inside the little house Wilbur had built. Tommy and Tubbo sat at one end of the table, refusing to let go of each other's hands.  
Tubbo had been so terrified he would never see Tommy again, even though he knew the blonde still had a life left. For his part, Tommy had insisted that he’d known Tubbo would be fine and that he wasn’t worried for a second. His reaction to Tubbo’s wounds had said otherwise though. He had immediately summoned Badboyhalo and insisted the demon look Tubbo over.

When he had gotten Tommy’s frantic message, Bad had immediately rushed to the burgeoning country, bag full of healing and regen potions. The demon knew Tommy wouldn’t send him a message unless it was important. He had quickly realized he would probably need more to treat the wounds everyone had sustained. He hadn’t even had the chance to point it out though before Wilbur had let him use L’manburg’s brewing stands. After all, he cared about his brothers more than anything.

The general himself was standing awkwardly in the corner, hovering near Fundy, but not wanting to be near the man who had forced his country into war in the first place. As for the two young men, Dream and Fundy hadn’t left each other’s sides, and the pair got visibly nervous whenever someone approached them. The others had let them be, deciding it was best to give Dream a chance to recover.

Eret was standing by the window, carefully not meeting anyone’s gaze, trying not to make the air in the room more tense. He couldn’t stop himself from stealing glances at Wilbur and Fundy and Dream. It worried him that the general hadn’t said anything about Fundy and Dream, but Eret knew better than to call attention to the matter.

Technoblade was cleaning his sword, and showing Sapnap how to do the same. The pair seemed to be doing rather well, although Sapnap kept glancing towards the door as he expected someone to burst through it any minute. Techno was still woozy from his knock to the head, but it had only taken him a swig from one of Bad’s healing potions to get back on his feet.

The demon himself was fretting over Dream. On top of the wounds Fundy, Tubbo and Techno had given him in the cavern, the wounds that the Blood God had previously healed had now reopened. Everyone was bracing themselves for the inevitable lecture they would get once Bad was sure Dream wasn’t on death’s door anymore.

They sat in the much welcomed silence; the quiet bubbling of brewing stands and Bad’s soft admonitions to Dream were the only sounds. Finally, the demon decided Dream didn’t need a constant watchful eye anymore. He turned to face the group. “One of you muffin heads needs to tell me what happened right now.. Did you and Dream get into another fight?”

Everyone shifted awkwardly. “Um...kind of?” Tubbo said awkwardly. Techno snorted, not taking his eyes off his sword. “We didn’t get into a fight with Dream,” the pig warrior said. “We got into a fight with the guy who was possessing Dream.” Bad blinked. Once. Twice. Then he whirled around to face Technoblade. “I’m sorry, the what?” he asked, not bothering to keep the hint of anger out of his voice. Fundy fished out Tubbo’s journal and passed it to the demon. “Well, you see...”

Once he had finished explaining, Bad was silent. Then he moved to give Tubbo a hug. “Tubbo, I’m so sorry. If there’s anything I can do for you...” Tubbo smiled. “Thanks, Bad,” he said. “But I’m good. I’ve got Tommy and Wilbur and Fundy and everyone.” He meant it. The demon nodded and smiled back, but then he glanced at Fundy and his smile fell.   
“Oh, Fundy. That must have been so awful for you.” The fox’s face didn’t betray a reaction, but his ears pressed down flat. “I’m so sorry. And Dream, that had to be awful for you too, fighting your-” he stopped mid sentence, realizing what he had just let slip. Slowly, he turned to Wilbur, and chuckled nervously. The general was glowering, but he waved away Bad’s concern. “I already know. Fundy told me when we figured out Dream was possessed.”

Eret’s head whipped to face Fundy. “You told Wilbur?” Fundy nodded tiredly, hand resting absentmindedly on Dream’s. The warrior squeezed it gently. “How’d it go?” Eret asked nervously. The fox didn’t say anything. Instead, he slowly looked to his father.

Wilbur sighed and leaned back. “I still don’t approve. I think you could do a lot better than Dream.” Fundy’s ears pressed closer into his scalp. “But,” Wilbur continued. “Techno was right. You’re not a kid anymore. You’re still my son. It’s still my job to take care of you, but...I’m not exactly doing my job if I don’t respect your decisions, and especially if I forbid you from the things that make you happy.” Fundy stared at his father in disbelief. Then, slowly, he smiled.

“I-I, Dad, thank you!” After a moment, Wilbur returned the smile. “Dream does make you happy though, right?” Fundy nodded. “Well, then, if that’s the case, I support you.” Wilbur turned to Dream. “As for you, though...” Dream swallowed nervously, but he met Wilbur’s gaze. “If you ever even think about hurting Fundy, I will not hesitate to go to war with you again,” the president said. Dream smiled and replied with his usual amount of sass. “I wouldn’t dream of hurting your son. Just out of curiosity, when can I meet your wife? Or did she already swim back to the ocean?” Wilbur rolled his eyes.

Techno stopped cleaning his sword, and sheathed it. “Aren’t you and Dream technically still at war though?” the pig-themed warrior pointed out. Dream cleared his throat awkwardly. “Yeah, about that.” He glanced up at Wilbur. “Techno won that duel. Those were the terms we agreed upon. That thing did not speak for me.” Wilbur glanced at him sharply. “What are you saying, Dream?” “I recognize L’manburg as an independent nation,” he said dryly. “Congratulations, President Soot.”

Everyone sat in stunned silence for a moment, but then Tommy leapt to his feet with an excited yell and tackled Tubbo in a hug. The brown-haired teen couldn’t help his own laugh of triumph at the news that their sacrifice had finally been worth something. Wilbur was staring in shock at his once enemy, tears pooling in his eyes. Fundy simply gazed at Dream lovingly. “Finally, dude,” Eret muttered. Even Techno and Sapnap couldn’t help the small smiles at the sight of Tommy and Tubbo shouting for joy.

Finally, Bad had to step in before Tubbo accidentally tore his stitches. Everyone calmed down, but Tommy’s eyes were still shining with happy tears. “You know, Dream,” the teen said. “You might not be so bad after all.” Dream returned the grin. “And you might not be as much of a gremlin child as I thought.” Tommy glared at Dream petulantly, but everyone just laughed. Tubbo noticed that one person was silent though.

Sapnap was staring at the door, looking like he was expecting something to happen. “Sapnap, you okay?” Tubbo asked. The man startled and turned back to look at Tubbo. “Yeah, I’m fine.” He paused, and then sighed. “Just worried about George I guess. I messaged him to come meet me, but he hasn’t responded yet.” The room was silent. Then, it was filled with the sounds of someone softly crying. They all turned to face Dream.

“I’m so sorry. Sapnap, I am so sorry.” “Dream, what are you talking about?” Sapnap asked gently. He couldn’t hide the nervous edge to his voice though. “After-after all the fighting,” Dream began hesitantly. “George was only at one life. That thing, the dreamon, it-it made me-” He was cut off by a sob. Slowly, Sapnap put the pieces together. “No,” he whispered.

No one said anything. Fundy pulled Dream closer, and Eret rested his hand lightly on Sapnap’s shoulder. Eventually, Wilbur spoke up. “Dream, Sapnap, I’m so sorry. If there is anything I or anyone in L’manburg can do for you, just say the word.” “We’re fine, Soot,” Sapnap said. It wasn’t cold though. Just numb.

Bad sighed tiredly. “It’s been a long day. I think we should all get to sleep.” Everyone nodded mutely, and Tubbo noticed just how tired he was.

He leaned against Tommy and fought to keep his eyes open. The teen shifted so his friend was more comfortable. “Is it just me, or do you guys just all wanna stick together for a while?” Tubbo murmured sleepily. Everyone nodded. “I don’t know where we’d stay though,” Fundy said. “L’manburg’s really only big enough to hold just us.” “I’ve got plenty of room in my castle,” Eret offered. “I’d be happy to let you guys stay there for a while.” Silently, everyone began gathering up their stuff, and the ragtag group made its way to the king’s palace in bands of two or three.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry! I couldn't help myself. I had to give you guys a little bit of angst. On the plus side, you get a nice long chapter. The next chapter is probably gonna be the last. I've had an absolute blast writing this and reading all of your wonderful comments and interacting with all you lovely people. I absolutely cannot express how much I absolutely adore the community that was brought together by this dumb stupid fic that I almost always wrote when I was sleep-deprived or burnt out. I cannot express how much it means to me that so many people saw this and thought it was interesting, but then decided to stick around to the end to see what happens next. I truly cannot express the value in every subscription, kudos, bookmark or comment. You guys mean so much to me, and I'm just incredibly thankful I could be a part of your life, at least a little. Thank you all so much. I love you guys so much.
> 
> Damnit, now I'm crying. Are you pleased with yourselves?


	31. Chapter 31

Techno stood waiting at the base of the tree while Fundy and Tubbo looked it over one more time. Tommy was keeping an eye out for mobs, and stoutly refusing to look at Technoblade. The pig caught a glimpse of tears in his eyes, though. He pretended to ignore them. Wilbur was nervously fretting over the supplies Techo had, and making sure he hadn’t forgotten anything.

“And you’re sure you’ve got your crossbow?” Techno rolled his eyes and pushed his cloak aside to reveal the weapon. “Yes, Wil. I’ve got it. Now relax, please. Even if I did forget something, I’m going right back to L’manburg. You can just return it to me in a couple months.” Wilbur sighed. “Yeah, yeah, I know. I just...I’m gonna miss you, Techno.”

The pig-themed warrior grinned. “I’m gonna miss you too Wilbur. It was nice to see you again. And don’t you dare lose that last life of yours, you hear me?” Wilbur shoved him playfully. “No promises. But I’ll do my best.” “That’s all I ask.” “Oi!” Tommy called out suddenly. “That portal done? I don’t want to be out here all day!”

Tubbo snorted, but he closed his journal, and motioned to Techno that it was ready. “Gonna miss you Technoblade,” the teen said. “Don’t do anything too crazy when you get back, got it?” “Me? Do something crazy?” Techno responded dryly. “I wouldn't dream of it.” Tubbo just rolled his eyes and pulled Techno into a hug. After a moment, Techno let him.

Fundy grinned. “Don’t try to overthrow too many governments Mr. Blade.” “There's no such thing,” Techno said, half-teasing. Wilbur shot him a disapproving glare. “But I’ll try not to wreak too much havoc,” he promised. Wilbur seemed satisfied, and shooed Fundy and Tubbo off in order to give Tommy a moment to say good-bye to his older brother.

Tommy sheathed his sword, and stepped a little closer to Techno. Then he stood on his tip-toes so that he was eye-level with the warrior. “I’m not gonna say good-bye. I mean, I’m just gonna see you again in a few months anyways. So there’s no point being all sappy.” The teen sniffled, and no, those definitely weren’t tears in his eyes. Techno just rolled his eyes and pulled Tommy in for a hug. The teen protested loudly, but didn’t do anything to separate himself from Techno.

Eventually, the two broke away, and Techno turned back to the portal. He gave a small wave to the rest of his family, and then he stepped through the base of the tree.

He stepped out onto a wide wooden road, the prime path. He was in the same place he had first appeared, next to the ivy-covered hill and the ruins of a large house. In the distance, he could make out the outline of the Holy Land, and the steeple of Church Prime, but he saw none of the other buildings that should have been there. Had he arrived too early?

He set out down the prime path, in the direction of L’manburg. It was the best place to get answers. If it was still a giant crater, then he probably hadn’t changed too much. With his luck though, he figured that probably wasn’t the case. He reached the top of the staircase that led to the plateau L’manburg was built on. It was definitely different from the way it was supposed to be.

The prime path led into large, thick obsidian walls, that engulfed the entire plateau, and spread out to the ocean. The docks that fed into the northern side of the wall stuck out like a sore thumb. From inside the wall, a large stone building rose towards the sky, and Techno noticed it looked remarkably similar to Eret’s castle. One of the parapets of the building even had a rainbow banner flying in the wind. This definitely wasn’t what was supposed to be here.

Techno made his way down the staircase, and was greeted at the entryway by a pair of guards. One was tall and lanky, and Techno could see the brown hair spilling out of his helmet. The other one was considerably shorter, and there were burn scars creeping up the side of his face. He couldn’t make who they were though. Techno took a step closer, and suddenly, the guards had drawn their crossbows and leveled them with his chest.

Techno held his hands up in a sign of surrender. “Relax. I’m not looking to make trouble,” the warrior deadpanned. “Yet.” “I know Technoblade,” the shorter one said tiredly. Techno recognized his voice instantly. It was Tubbo. “But the policy is, we gotta bring all outsiders to see the king,” the teen said. Techno’s brow furrowed. “What king?” The other guard sighed, and Techno realized it was Wilbur. “It’s probably best you see for yourself. Follow us.”

He allowed the pair to escort him into L’manburg, and into the building he had seen inside the walls. Turned out, it actually was a castle, and from the looks of it, Eret was the one who had designed it. The king himself was laying bricks over a large hole in the facade. Gone were his cloak and crown, in fact the only remaining vestiges of his kingship it seemed was Dream’s crossbow, which was hanging at his side.

“What happened to the building? Why’s that hole there?” Techno asked, not really wanting to know why Eret had been dethroned. “The rebel insurgents attacked the castle a few days ago,” Tubbo said. It sounded like a practiced response, and at the sight of the teen’s closed off look, Techno decided it was best not to press. Distantly, he wondered where Tommy was right now.

Wilbur threw open the doors to the castle, and led Techno through the halls until they arrived at the throne room. A large black throne rose in the middle, decorated with strips of gold and crying obsidian. A slightly smaller throne sat to the left, and lunging in it was Dream. Techno leaned closer and whispered to Wilbur, “You let that green blob take over your country again? Cringe!” “No,” Wilbur said bitterly. “Not Dream.”

Suddenly, the doors to the right of the room flew open, and a figure stepped into the room. They were draped in a long red cloak, and a golden crown perched precariously on top of their ears. Their tail swished back and forth as they made their way to the throne, and sat down.

“Oh, hello, Technoblade,” Fundy said. “You’re finally back.” “Fundy? What are you doing on that throne?” Techno said, hand drifting to his crossbow. “I take it things are different than you expected, Technoblade?” The fox said, a pleased grin on his face.

“Aren’t you supposed to be with Pogtopia?” Techno asked, and immediately knew he’d struck a nerve. Fundy’s gaze hardened, and Tubbo nervously took a step back. “Don’t mention those traitors in my court, Technoblade.” “Traitors?” “The rebels can’t accept that Fundy won the election,” Dream said, startling Technoblade. The warrior had forgotten he was there.

“You won the election?” Techno asked, turning to Fundy with a disbelieving stare. The fox looked ridiculously smug. “And now you’re king of L’manburg?” The fox nodded slyly. “Well,” Techno pulled out his crossbow and casually began loading it. “Down with the government, I suppose.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> God, I can't believe I'm saying good-bye to this fic. I'm going to miss it so much. 60 pages, 31 chapters, and 1200 words in, it's finally time to let it go. I really hope you all enjoyed reading this fic as much as I enjoyed writing it. I honestly cannot tell you how much writing this for and interacting with all of you has meant to me. The last few months have been a really rough time in my life, and coming home every evening just to be able to work on this fic, and waking up each morning to all your lovely comments and kudos has honestly been one of the best experiences in my life. Thank you all, so, so much for this. I love you all.
> 
> But now that this fic is over, what comes next? you may be asking yourselves. Well rest assured this is not the only SMP fic I have planned. I'm planning on writing the Hermit!Tommy AU as my next fic. However, I won't post it until I complete my other fic, "Secrets of the Falls" (hint hint). So stick around or don't, but it was an absolute blast to have you along for this part of the journey, and I can't wait to get started on what's next. So signing off one last time
> 
> -Luna Flammata

**Author's Note:**

> There will be another chapter, don't worry


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